Rafael Nadal Fans

VIDEO: Rafael Nadal Defeats Alex De Minaur, Sends Spain To ATP Cup Final – match highlights

Watch highlights as Rafael Nadal comes from a set down to beat Alex de Minaur and book Spain’s place in the ATP Cup final. 

138 comments

  1. SOMETHING WAS WAY UN NATURAL ABOUT THIS DOUBLES WHERE OPPONENTS GOT WAY TOO MUCH HELP AS PABLO PLAYED SO HARD ALL SOLO .
    DOES NOT MATTER SWEETHEART YOU DID A FANTASTIC TEAM WORK FOR TEAM SPAIN AND IT HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH YOUR DRIVE AND INSPIRATION.
    ENJOY A NICE BREAK AND FACE AO WITH AN OPEN LOVING STRONG FEISTY ARMS!!!!!!!!:) VAMOS SWEETHEART AND KEEP SMILING!!!!!!!:) XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

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  2. It seems most of the Spaniards in the team have some kind of block facing Novak and Serbia except for RBA. From what I saw this was Carreno Busta’s worst performance in the doubles in this tournament.

    Anyway enough of grumbling! Very sorry all. Just awfully disappointed and annoyed.

    Hope Rafa learns something from his performance or is it too late??? Hopefully not!

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    • mjus,

      I have to reply here because there’s no reply button on your comment about Rafa needing to be good on all surfaces to be considered GOAT.

      I’ve never subscribed to the GOAT debate so I have no comment on that part of your comment.

      As you know Rafa has won 19 slams, 12 on clay and 7 on other surfaces. Most players don’t even win 3 or 4 slams.

      My priority is to have a healthy Rafa. It’s the beginning of the 2020 season and already he’s falling apart. As an observer, at present he is not at his best. I don’t know what is on his mind but I’m hoping he is ok.

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      • He’s not at his best because of having to travel from Perth to Sydney which has a different time zone, and having to adjust to that plus getting used to the weather conditions in Sydney and the court surface, all done within one day.

        He was physically tired, plus having to play doubles after losing to Goffin in the QF, played till past midnight and ended up sleeping at 5am. He played the evening session of the SF whilst Djoko the morning session so Djoko had more time to rest before the final.

        I do feel that had Rafa not being tired, and started playing the match the way he played in set 2, he might even have a chance to win the match. He had to impose his offensive game on Djoko instead of playing defence against Djoko.

        There are players who can beat Djoko on the HCs – Medvedev, Tsitsipas, Thiem, and of course Stan; even old man Fed could play his best tennis to get a win over Djoko at the WTF!

        Rafa has the game to beat Djoko, he just needs to believe he can do it, the way he did at Rome last year – came out all guns blazing with the determination of beating Djoko no matter what! That is the mindset that Rafa should have playing against Djoko regardless of the surfaces, if he came so close on grass in five sets when grass was his worst surface, then why not believe in himself that he could do better on the HCs?

  5. PABLO IS A SOLO PLAYER HERE…….WHAT’S GOING ON….F DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE PLAYING TO WIN THIS DOUBLES MATCH……..

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  6. Rafa has confirmed that he is tired and his energy level has dropped after playing so much tennis in a short space of time.

    Team Spain look sharp at the moment, leading 3-1 and it’s good to see that Rafa has come back on court to support his team.

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  7. VAMOS SWEETHEART!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) YOU HAD BRIGHT MOMENTS, SHARP BEAUTIFUL TIMELY ACES, GREAT NET POINTS, AND BREAKING OPPORTUNITY…….IT IS OK TO NOT WIN ALL THE TIME. JUST ANOTHER MATCH. PLEASE IGNORE ANY AND ALL POST MATCH COMMENTS AND STRONGLY STAND FIRM. DO NOT LET ANY OF THE BS FEE BACK POST MATCH ANALYSIS GET TO YOU…..N IS NOT A BETTER PLAYER. WHEN YOU ARE SETTLED AND FREELY RELAXED, YOUR GENIUS TENNIS CLICKS AND ALL GOES WELL. KEEP GOING SWEETHEART, THERE WILL BE OTHER OPEN DOORS…..KEEP GOING AND KNOW 100% THAT N DID NOT TAKE VICTORY….HE WON BECAUSE AT SOME MOMENTS OF THE MATCH YOU WERE NOT AT YOUR BEST., AND THAT IS NO BIG DEAL. NO WORRIES…..JUST THE WAY IT GOES….ONE OF THESE UNSETTLED MOMENTS BUT HEY….KEEP YOUR HEAD HIGH SWEETHEART AND KEEP GOING FORWARD EMBRACING YOUR MAGNIFICENT SUCCESS THUS FAR AND YOUR BRILLIANT ACHIEVEMENTS. THAT IS THE MAIN TRUTH ABOUT YOUR TENNIS! : ) KEEP THAT UPFRONT BECAUSE YOU HAVE SO MUCH TO BE PROUD OF. NO BIG DEAL HERE JUST KEEP IT IN PERSPECTIVE AND ENJOY EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) OBSTACLES AND SET BACKS ARE APART OF SUCCESS MOVING FORWARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) WE LVOE YOU SWEETHEART AND TRUST IN YOUR STRENGTH AND POWER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) VAMOS SWEETHEART AND HAVE A GOOD EVENING AND JOYFUL RELAXED SLEEP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : )
    BY TH WAY, I HAD THE ENTIRE MATCH MUTE BECAUSE I CAN NOT STAND THIS UMPIRE UNPLEASANT VOICE, AND THE SUBJECTIVE MANNER IN WHICH HE CALLS OUT THE SCORES. AT SOME POINT SUPPOSEDLY PRETENDED TO HAVE MADE A MISTAKE AS YOU WERE APPROACHING HIM . IT LOOKED RATHER BAD AND UNPROFESSIONAL ON HIS BEHALF. WITHOUT HEARING, THE EXCHANGE BETWEEN YOU AND THE UMPIRE, HARD TO TELL BUT IT SURE APPEARED HE DID THAT TO STOP YOUR MOMENTUM. …… AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MATCH THE WAY HE SHOOK AND HIGH – FIVED N HANDS WHILE YOU WERE STILL AT YOUR SIT, IN MY HUMBLE OPINION, WAS NOT PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT AS IT WAS PRETTY TELLING HE WAS WAY TOO FRIENDLY WITH ONLY ONE OF THE PLAYERS, AND GAVE THE IMPRESSION OF NOT BEING AN OBJECTIVE PRO UMPIRE. FURTHERMORE, DURING ALL MATCHES, HIS CYNICAL AND DISRESPECTED ATTITUDE, NOT FUNNY HUMOR, AND OFTEN POOR ONE SIDED UMPIRING, IS MAKING UNNECESSARY TENSION ON THE COURT AND IT MUST BE STOPPED A IT IS NOT ONLY UNPLEASANT TO WATCH, BUT IT TAKES AWAY FROM THE FUN WATCHING HIS NON PROFESSIONAL CHILDISH CONDUCT AND BEHAVIOR OVER AND OVER AGAIN. VAMOS SWEETHEART!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) KEEP GOING DEAR RAFA ….WE LOVE YOU AND ADMIRE YOUR BRILLIANT TENNIS SO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : )
    BEFORE THE AO OPEN YOU HAVE TO TAKE ALL THE BS TO CONSIDERATION SWEETHEART, AND THE BEST WAY TO FACE ALL THIS IS BY BOTH KNOWING IT GOES ON, AND ACCEPTING IT AHEAD OF TIME, AND NEUTRALIZE YOUR REACTION AND DISAPPOINTMENT AHEAD OF TIME, SO THAT YOU KEEP YOUR FLOW OF PLAYING. ACCEPTING ALL OF IT, AHEAD OF TIME REMOVES THE IMPACT ON YOU AND TAKES AWAY THE FORCE TO CHANGE YOUR PLAYING. PSYCHOLOGY IS EVERYTHING AND BY NOW YOU HAVE HAD AMPLE TIMES TO SEE IT ALL PLAYED OUT. REACTING IS YOUR NATURAL RESPOND, AND IT IS YOUR POWER SWEETHEART TO ACCEPT THE UNSETTLED FEELING – YOU ARE JUST LIKE THE REST OF US HUMAN, AND ACCEPT THE TENSION, AND KEEP GOING TELLING YOURSELF IT IS JUST THE MIND PLAYING IN REACTION TO ALL THE BACKGROUND BS. SO TAKE PRIDE IN KNOWING AND ACCEPT, REACT, AND APPRECIATE ALL FEELINGS AND ENTIRE SITUATION AND KNOW YOU HAVE FEELING ABOUT IT BUT TRUST THAT NO BACKGROUND BS CAN BE STRONGER THAN YOU AND KEEP GOING SWEETHEART!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) TODAY MATCH DOES NOT INDICATE NOTHING……THE ONLY OBVIOUS INDICATION WAS THAT AT SOME MOMENTS YOU WERE NOT AT YOUR BEST AND THAT IS OK. WE LOVE YOU SWEETHEART AN HAPPY TEAM SPIN IS LEADING IN DOUBLES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) ENJOY EVERYTHING AND HOLD YOUR HEAD UP !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) WE LOVE HOW THE FIVE….5 ACES CAME INTO YOUR PLAY AND HOW BEAUTIFULLY YOU ADJUSTED TO ALL THE EVOLVING SHORT POINT SERVE GAMES. GO RAFA GO AND VAMOS SWEETHEART!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) SPAIN TEAM IS WINNING IN LARGE DUE TO YOUR PRECIOUS CONTRIBUTION AND INSPIRATION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) VAMOS SWEETHEART AND ENJOY EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

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  8. If not for the ATP rules, I’m sure Rafa would have preferred RBA to play Djokovic, and truth be told RBA could have won.
    I have said it here before, Rafa tries his best to avoid playing Djokovic. Djokovic has gotten into his head and he prefers to avoid him so as not to further weaken his H:H against his nemesis.
    As it is, Djokovic is the one person that stands in the way of Rafa’s path to the GOAT title.

    But, as I earlier said, Team Spain will still win this inaugural event, at least to save face for Rafa.

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    • Maria, i felt exactly the same about RBA due to his game style,, hitting a flatter ball and being more consistent.

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  10. I hate watching Rafa v Nole matches! You get patches where it seems OK, but then it goes wrong – he just doesn’t seem to be able to get past him. I thought Rafa’d play the doubles – I had to nip out and have just got back to find that it’s Feli and Pablo.

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  11. Stay healthy and get some rest before you get ready for the Aussie Open, Rafa❤️
    It is okay that you support your teammates instead of playing. Good luck to Pablo and Feliciano🍀

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  12. Rafa, good luck to you and Pablo playing doubles, you can still win the trophy for Spain🍀 You tried your best but it didn’t work out in singles. You are always my #1 win or lose❤️ Vamos💪

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  13. Congratulations to novak. He was simple the better player. Here are some painful conclusions about the match

    Djokovic is the better player on hardcourt, grass and indoor
    Nadal keeps playing same old same old against djokovic and hasnt found the key on beating djokovic on hard court, grass and indoor
    Nadal wont be able to win in melbourne unless someone prevents djokovic from reaching the final like for example: wawrinka, tspiras, thiem, shapovalov, kachanov, andreev, cilic or federer
    Although nadal has more grandslam titles then djokovic it doesnt appear that he is also the better player then novak. When you have not beat your opponent on hardcourt in 7 years not even took a set away from him that is devastating and tennis pundits will take notice of that
    When you have not beat your opponent on grass in 12 years, when you have not beat your opponent on indoor in 10 years tennis pundits will take notice of that

    Nadal is no match for djokovic on hardcourt, grass and indoor its something that we dont want to hear but its simply the truth

    Therefore there are some pundits who will question the status of nadal as the goat. and think that the debate of who is the greatest of all time should be between federer and djokovic

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    • Spot on analysis. Sad as it sounds, you may be right about the GOAT debate being between Djokovic and Federer as well. Rafa must be livid with himself yet he renders himself powerless.

      But who’s the most loved player by Rafa fans though? Rafa! Hahaha…

      Looking for some silver lining.

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    • I think Rafa should pull out of the AO for obvious reasons; the heat; hard court; he seems tired; needs to be in top form for the clay season.

      Rafa has also committed to the AO Relief exhibition and Match for Africa exhibition.

      There is no shame in not being able to overcome Mother Nature.

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      • margo,

        i disagree with you complety

        If he does that that means that he is scared of novak. If you want to be the best player of all time you need to be strong on all surfaces not on clay only

      • Like mjus, i disagree. The heat is no excuse for Rafa to pull out of the AO before the tournament has even started. Many will see it as a cop out.

        The humidity is a problem for his game style and the spin he puts on the ball, because the balls get heavy and therefore don’t travel off the court as quickly, giving his opponent more time. These type of conditions are more suited to a flatter hitter of the ball like RBA. If the heat affects his health during the tournament, then that’s a different story.

        Rafa still has a good chance of wiining the AO, but the stars need to be aligned – after all, we are talking the best of five sets not three. He has to ensure that he’s always fully hydrated at all times and be prepared to take more risk instead of giving players the same
        look. Also, his “improved” serve was missing today, so he needs to rediscover it.

      • I don’t think Rafa would pull out of any grand slam unless he is injured.

        It is only the start of the season, Rafa has plenty of time to make 2020 another successful season as long as he stays healthy.🤞🙏

        I support you in good times and bad 100%, Rafa! Vamos💪❤️

  14. To be honest – Rafa did better than I expected. It was better than last year’s Australian Open final, at least he made it competitive for a set. I was setting little goals for Rafa – break serve, get to a tiebreak, win a set. He managed one of them.

    Just heard that Rafa is not playing the doubles. I’m surprised. I hope he’s OK.

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  15. I couldn’t bear to watch the tue break, so followed the score on my phone. I won’t sugar coat this. Rafa’s strategic play goes awol when he comes up against Novak. All those break points and not being able to convert any is shocking. Only one set taken off Novak in the last nine matches on hard courts us even more alarming! Rafa still hasn’t found a way through the wall which is Novak and i’m not sure he’s ever going to. We just have to say of Novak “too good”.

    For Rafa, winning the tournament is some consolation, but this defeat will linger for a long while. I’m sure he will feel that he’s let his team down, but et’s hope that he can redeem himself and his team in the doubles.

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    • I’m not surprised that Rafa won’t be playing the doubles as he must be both mentally and physically exhausted. I just hope that a niggling injury hadn’t crept in. How desperately disappointed Rafa must feel not to have won the singles. I know that it’s a team event, but he must be carrying the heavy weight of responsibility for the loss right now.

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    • Lorna, Novak’s game is a foil to Rafa’s game. Just as Rafa’s game is a foil to Roger’s game.

      Plus in this case, there are mitigating circumstances: notice how the elite teams who ‘were drawn to play in Perth’, did horribly when coming to the quarters to play in Sydney.

      I for one, my body clock that is, is negatively affected and impacted by time differences, even as miniscule as 3 hours. Some people are more sensitive than others plus varying sleep requirements.

      This is definitely food for thought for the ATP officials to consider when choosing cities, schedules etc for future ATP Cup tournaments i.e. if they genuinely desire to provide a level playing field for all participants.

      Melbourne would have been an ideal venue for those who played in Perth. Just an hour difference from Brisbane, and equal time zone as Sydney, the venue for the business end of the ATP Cup.

      But I also see the value of allowing Perth tennis afficionados the opportunity to bring the tournament to their city.

      Come on folks, in life as in tennis, you win some, you lose some!

      Let’s be upset and cry for 15 minutes, then roar a unanimous NEXT! for Rafa.

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  16. Mac, maybe ur right but I think Novak is better mentally and has much more of a killer instinct than Rafa.

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  17. I don’t even feel sorry for Rafa. Just terribly disappointed ☹️ maybe for myself. If Rafa is going to be sooo stubborn and refuses (seems like it) to change his game, keeps going back to his old game style and plan he does not deserve to win. SORRY!!!!

    How can we fans (if no one else can) send him the message to be aggressive (also to use his nervous energy and help to dissipate his nerves) not stand so far back etc. etc.

    Novak is not soo special. His game style is also not so different- in fact it is similar to most other players especially the youngsters if today. They have a better chance of beating him than Rafa.

    Can’t believe I’m writing this but I’m angry!!! 😡😡

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  18. Sigh. I’ll just accept that Djoker is a better player than Rafa, as much as it hurts to admit. Djokovic is simply solid, and you just know that he will find a way out of tough situations, whereas with Rafa you’re constantly on edge.

    Love Rafa though! He made a go of it in the second set, but some bad decisions cost him the tie break.

    Yea… Whoever wins the ATP Cup, Rafa loses, because he just suffered another loss against his greatest rival.

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  19. Ok folks that’s it. I m off to bed. Not watching doubles. Don’t care what happens with atp cup anymore 😭😭😭😭good luck for doubles whoever is watching

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