Topic: Enter the Clay Warrior King : Domination Redefined / 7 RG Titles and Counting

[hercules]

are you sure he is playing in belgrade?

[Alex]

are you sure he is playing in belgrade?

not sure 100% (I picked some info from MTF from some Serbian posters, so here it is) ... there is a huge pressure for him to play and he is on the list. Neither Tipsy nor Troicki will be playing the SO this year. It's a big problem for the organizers. It seems that they simply can not attract enough good players. I looked at the entry list and it's not that good. I, personally, don't think that Djokovic should be playing any 250 tournaments regardless of the fact that it is in Serbia. I don't think Nadal should be playing in Barcelona either, but at least it's a 500 tournament.

[hercules]

well he skipped davis cup even it meant serbia could lose which they are probably going to. so i am not sure about the loyalty part yet.
 
does he and his family own this tournament? do you have any information on that?
 
if so then he is likely to play. my own wild guess is that he might play.
 
as for the blunderng buffoon---aka clay warrior---i think he should skip madrid to rest, relax, and recharge.
 
 

[Alex]

well, from what I understand they are now not owning it literally, but they are so heavily involved. Novak's uncle is the tournament director. As far as I understand it's the city of Belgrade that owns the tournament.  I really think that if Djokovic really goes ahead and play MC, Madrid, Belgrade and Rome prior to RG it's not gonna be pretty ... Djokovic as I already said doesn't really need any extra points so I don't understand his schedule but whatever.

As for Nadal I agree with you and I think he should skip either Barcelona or Madrid. He really needs to rest and be fully prepared for RG. I mean, forget about everything else. Does Rafa really need to play every clay tournament. I don't think so. He proved  himself already by winning everything on clay a year after year. He simply has to think about his scheduling. 

[hercules]

well, from what I understand they are now owning it literally, but they are so heavily involved. Novak's uncle is the tournament director. As far as I understand it's the city of Belgrade that owns the tournament.  I really think that if Djokovic really goes ahead and play MC, Madrid, Belgrade and Rome prior to RG it's not gonna be pretty ... Djokovic as I already said doesn't really need any extra points so I don't understand his schedule but whatever.

As for Nadal I agree with you and I think he should skip either Barcelona or Madrid. He really needs to rest and be fully prepared for RG. I mean, forget about everything else. Does Rafa really need to play every clay tournament. I don't think so. He proved  himself already by winning everything on clay a year after year. He simply has to think about his scheduling.

affirmative general alex. i hear ya. that is a lot of work for no-djok if he plays all those events. unless of course he wins all his matches in 90 minutes or less. that is jsut a like a good workout session for him.

nadal is the one who has to worry about his fitness and his health because he already has knee issues and also because he has the most demanding style of play on the tour.

he has paid fairly heavy costs for that demanding style over the years. again its his own damn fault. if he improves his game just 5% in all areas,  the game instantly becomes easier for him and for his knees.

he simply is hell bent on doing things his way and he just says NO to improvement.

nole on the other hand just keeps improving in all areas of his game.

[hercules]

i see general masterclass is now a member here.
 
good deal. he will be a huge asset to this forum.
 
i am usually chillin at mtf and the castle but i like visiting here as well because of alex, swish, the founder of this forum, general shanks, and now general masterclass.
 
falcon and some of the others not named are also pretty damn cool. i will give credit to the others next time. you know you who are anyway.

[hercules]

 Center Court: Men's Clay Court Preview



Prim Siripipat and Greg Garber preview the men's clay court seasonTags: Tennis, Preview, Center Court, Prim Siripipat, Greg GarberCenter Court: Men's Clay Court PreviewIt's time for liftoff again on the men's tour. In this golden era of the ATP, no section of the season has run quite as hot as the clay-court season. Tension always builds as the players slide and grind their way across Europe, from Monte Carlo to Madrid to Rome, on their way to the first Grand Slam in four months, in Paris. In past seasons, that tension has surrounded Rafael Nadal and his yearly quest for perfection on dirt. Last year, things got even tenser as Novak Djokovic defied Nadal and brought a record-setting win streak to Roland Garros. It all came to a head on center court there in the semifinals, when Roger Federer ended Djokovic's streak in the most dramatic match of 2011.
How about 2012? As good as he's been, Djokovic doesn't have a streak this time, and few are expecting perfection from Rafa again. But on paper, this clay season, which gets under way in earnest two weeks from now in Monte Carlo, could be the most dramatic of them all.
The primary reason for that is what's going to come at the end: A history-making, potentially era-defining French Open. Last year, Nadal came to Paris with a chance to tie Bjorn Borg's record six titles at Roland Garros, while Djokovic arrived toting his gaudy win streak. If anything, the stakes are even higher for both men this time around. Djokovic will have a chance to become the first player since Rod Laver in 1969 to win four straight majors -- the Djoker Slam. Rafa, meanwhile, could become the first man to win seven titles at Roland Garros. Djokovic has invaded Nadal's territory in London and New York, but thus far Rafa has held his ground in Paris.
Their duel in 2012 should begin much earlier. Both men are set to play in Monte Carlo in mid-April, as well as the Masters events in Madrid and Rome the following month. They might put on a two-man high-wire act all over Europe for the next eight weeks. If, at the end of that act, Djokovic does get the better of Rafa and win his fourth straight Slam, he'll have achieved something that neither Federer nor Nadal could pull off.
What about that third man of men's tennis, Roger Federer? Doesn't he have a say in this? He does, of course, but so far he's not scheduled to play anywhere until Madrid and Rome. That would leave him with five weeks off after his early loss in Key Biscayne, which is perhaps a good thing in a year in which he's targeting an Olympic gold medal. But the tournament director in Monte Carlo is holding a wild card aside for Federer and hoping for a late entry. If Federer takes it, he could potentially challenge Nadal for the No. 2 ranking, and No. 2 seeding at Roland Garros. Rafa is 900 points ahead at the moment, but has much more to defend.
On the one hand, Federer has performed well recently after long breaks. On the other, the last time he took a wild card into Monte Carlo, he went on to win the French Open and Wimbledon. Whether Federer shows up in Monaco alongside Rafa and Nole or not, men's tennis is ready for liftoff.

[masterclass]

The problem for Novak Djokovic is that he was too good last year. He has a lot of points to defend, and a bulk of them in majors, which are the most difficult to defend. He did a good job of defending his best major on his favorite surface - medium slow hard court, but it took a lot out of both him and Mr. Nadal. Neither has been dominant after that. 

Now we are embarking on the clay season. Nadal is defending the most points due to Roland Garros, MC, and Barcelona. But something a little unusual this year is that Djokovic is also defending both Madrid and Rome (and Belgrade). Chances are that he'll only be able to successfully defend only one of those masters tourneys, so he entered MC as he did not play last year, and thus any points gained at MC are net, so a good performance there can offset an earlier loss in Madrid and/or Rome. 

He needs as many points as he can muster in the clay season, because he defends Wimbledon, and the chances are high that he cannot defend it successfully. There are too many players that can beat him there if he doesn't get a cakewalk draw.  The other part is that with Federer playing so well this year so far, and obviously attempting to peak for the grass season via his long rest now, that he'll be very dangerous to win at Wimbledon and the Olympics at Wimbledon.  One can't dismiss Federer at the big W just because his last two efforts have only been QF efforts. He's too good on grass, and the players that beat him had once in a lifetime efforts there against Federer. 

As I said in a post elsewhere, if Djokovic slips just a bit, and only makes it to the semifinal at Wimbledon, combined with a Federer win, it's a swing of 2920 points.  So if Djokovic's pre-Wimbledon point tally is not high enough relative to Federer, he potentially could lose #1 at Wimbledon.  That's why he is going to play every clay tourney he can, esp. Monte-Carlo.  If he makes the final at MC, then he is free to either skip Belgrade or not put in a big effort there if he feels he needs a rest.

Nadal is under a lot of pressure to win at Monte-Carlo. If he were to lose to Djokovic there, it would signal danger signs for Roland Garros, and he better be prepared to put in the work to hold his RG title. Clay is to Nadal what air is for the rest of us. If he were to lose at MC and RG and do no better in Rome, then his domination on clay would have ended.  So he needs to put away his doubles ambitions, his golf dreams, his video sessions, any other distractions and focus on his singles tennis if he wants to hold onto his clay dominance.  IF you see him do otherwise, I think it's a clear signal that he subconsciously wants to leave the game, sooner rather than later.  Nadal can only gain 800 points this clay season, but he can lose far more, so he must be on top of his clay game.

Respectfully,
masterclass

[masterclass]

i see general masterclass is now a member here.
 
good deal. he will be a huge asset to this forum.
 
i am usually chillin at mtf and the castle but i like visiting here as well because of alex, swish, the founder of this forum, general shanks, and now general masterclass.
 
falcon and some of the others not named are also pretty damn cool. i will give credit to the others next time. you know you who are anyway.

Thanks Mr. General Samson.  It's good to take a breather from Ejacustan occasionally . Discussion doesn't seem to be filled with haters here, so it's all good.

Respectfully,
masterclass

[hercules]

excellent post general masterclass.
 
that is spot on at every corner. this is indeed the single most important clay season of clay warrior`s career.
 
 
and you are right. this place is a remote but a serene island where you can enjoy the peace and the quiet anytime . far from the madding crowd of ejacuzees of the lost world at ejacustan.
 
it is indeed a world apart from ejacustan.
 
i always make sure to stop by and say hello to my friends here.

[FedFanForever]

CD - FYI Nole has a residence in Monaco.

[hercules]

Toni talks about knees and recovery 1  Photo by Beth Wilson Toni gave an interview for SER Sports today. There’s an audio file here for those who understand Mallorquí (thanks @genny_ss). David J Nadal also tweeted some quotes from the interview:
 <blockquote> Palabras de ToniNadal a @SerdepBaleares: “Rafel está en período de recuperación.Se ha hecho un tratamiento y hay que esperar unos días
Toni Nadal: “Tenemos que esperar unos días para volver a entrenar. Volverá a hacerlo el miércoles que viene y ya veremos como va”
“Tenemos que seguir el proceso marcado por el médico. La lesión requiere reposo y eso haremos”, dice Toni Nadal a @serdepbaleares
Toni Nadal: “Nos quedaran 6 o 7 días para preparar Montecarlo. Estará recuperado del todo pero iremos un poco justos de entrenamiento”
Más de TNadal a @serdepbaleares: “El problema de Rafel no viene tanto por jugar en según que tipo de pistas.Viene por las plantillas que usa
“TNadal: “Gracias a estas plantillas solventa una problema, pero también por culpa de ellas tiene otros problemas en otras partes del cuerpo
“Esta lesión la afrontamos con tranquilidad. Sabemos que estará bien en unos días”, Toni Nadal dixit sobre lesión de @RafaelNadal
Toni Nadal: “Empieza para nosotros la parte más importante de la temporada. Es donde Rafel tiene a priori más posibilidades de ganar títulos
Toni Nadal: “Para nosotros es básico estar en perfectas condiciones ahora. Seria muy malo no estar bien en este momento”
“De aquí a hasta el final de los JJOO viene 7 torneos muy importantes y seguidos y que estar a tope”, dice Toni Nadal a @serdepbaleares
T Nadal “La exigencia no viene por defender o no puntos,viene porque es el momento donde tenemos más opciones de ganar torneos muy important
Toni Nadal: “Los problemas empezaron en Indian Wells. Sabíamos que en Miami no acabaría el torneo. Después de Tsonga tuvimos que parar”</blockquote> This mangles to:
Words ToniNadal to @ SerdepBaleares: “Rafel is the recovery period. It has become a treatment and wait a few days
Toni Nadal: “We have to wait a few days to resume training. Return to it next Wednesday and we’ll see how it goes”
“We must continue the process marked by the physician. The injury requires rest and we will do,” says Toni Nadal @ serdepbaleares
Toni Nadal: “We stay 6 or 7 days to prepare for Monte Carlo. Will be fully recovered but go a fair bit of training”
More TNadal to @ serdepbaleares: “The problem comes not so much by Rafel play as what kind of tracks. Comes by using templates
“TNadal:” With these templates solves a problem, but also because of them have other problems in other parts of the body
“This injury face it calmly. We know he’ll be fine in a few days,” Toni Nadal on injury dixit @ RafaelNadal
Toni Nadal: “It starts for us the most important part of the season. It’s where Rafel is a priori more likely to win titles
Toni Nadal: “For us it is essential to be in perfect condition now. Would be very bad not to be well at this time”
“From here until the end of the Olympics is very important and 7 tournaments in a row and be on top,” says Toni Nadal @ serdepbaleares
T Nadal “The requirement is not to defend or not points, is because it is the moment where we have more chance of winning tournaments very Important
Toni Nadal: “The problems began in Indian Wells. We knew that Miami would not end the tournament. After Tsonga had to stop”
 

[masterclass]

Happy Easter all!  I have family obligations most of today...
Take care and enjoy!

Respectfully,
masterclass

[hercules]

CD - FYI Nole has a residence in Monaco.

affirmative. and i hear he tries to practice year around on clay.

is it any wonder then why he has become more bullet proof off the ground than the clay warrior.

also nadal could have  saved his knees by practicing more on clay and cutting back on some of the hard court activity.

[hercules]

happy easter general masterclass.

[Alex]

happy Easter everyone.

[hercules]

affirmative.
 
happy easter everybody.

[pawan89]

  Alert!
 
Since half this thread is about drinking anyway, I have a question/comment to get out and who better to ask than Herc and Alex 

I don't drink much as it is, and since November 2011, I have only had drinks once, on new year's. Last night I said ok why not and took 4 shots of rum. Didn't do ANYTHING. I didn't even get a buzz, my face felt warmer but that's about it. I got frustrated and vowed to just quit drinking. It's no fun. Ever since I have been more health conscious, in my head, I see every drop of alcohol turning into a red hot dagger and stabbing my liver until my liver dies. And yet I take the plunge, hoping to let go once in a while and I decide to drink and what ends up happening? My liver keeps getting stabbed and no other effect. Even on new year's, I had at least 8-9 shots of various drinks and some mixed drinks to chase and  I got the slightest buzz that was barely worth it. Not cool. Tell me what to do. Also, for the record, I hate beer, I hate wine, I do like margaritas and some mixed drinks like that but for the most part, I just love Soda/Red-bull + Vodka/rum/tequila. I drink for the sole purpose of getting slightly drunk because I'm a lot of fun and have a lot of fun when I'm drunk - so i'm not a social or casual drinker, I almost always prefer shots and avoid chasers to avoid extra useless sugar and high frutcose corn syrup. And this has happened with friends around and at bars so I don't doubt the quality of the liquor too much. I also haven't tried any other kinda stuff, like whiskey or scotch or whatever, I am not too literate about drinks and such either. What can I do, short of chugging a litre of everclear to get me alcohol effects without much alcohol? I refuse to believe that I have a high tolerance for alcohol, that just doesn't make sense, there's nothing about me that'd suggest that. Teach me how to be a classy guy and to get the right amount of drink on! Should I put on a suit and order a Jameson and sip on it?

 

[FedFanForever]

Happy Easter.

[Alex]

Alert!
 
Since half this thread is about drinking anyway, I have a question/comment to get out and who better to ask than Herc and Alex 

I don't drink much as it is, and since November 2011, I have only had drinks once, on new year's. Last night I said ok why not and took 4 shots of rum. Didn't do ANYTHING. I didn't even get a buzz, my face felt warmer but that's about it. I got frustrated and vowed to just quit drinking. It's no fun. Ever since I have been more health conscious, in my head, I see every drop of alcohol turning into a red hot dagger and stabbing my liver until my liver dies. And yet I take the plunge, hoping to let go once in a while and I decide to drink and what ends up happening? My liver keeps getting stabbed and no other effect. Even on new year's, I had at least 8-9 shots of various drinks and some mixed drinks to chase and  I got the slightest buzz that was barely worth it. Not cool. Tell me what to do. Also, for the record, I hate beer, I hate wine, I do like margaritas and some mixed drinks like that but for the most part, I just love Soda/Red-bull + Vodka/rum/tequila. I drink for the sole purpose of getting slightly drunk because I'm a lot of fun and have a lot of fun when I'm drunk - so i'm not a social or casual drinker, I almost always prefer shots and avoid chasers to avoid extra useless sugar and high frutcose corn syrup. And this has happened with friends around and at bars so I don't doubt the quality of the liquor too much. I also haven't tried any other kinda stuff, like whiskey or scotch or whatever, I am not too literate about drinks and such either. What can I do, short of chugging a litre of everclear to get me alcohol effects without much alcohol? I refuse to believe that I have a high tolerance for alcohol, that just doesn't make sense, there's nothing about me that'd suggest that. Teach me how to be a classy guy and to get the right amount of drink on! Should I put on a suit and order a Jameson and sip on it?

 

my advice to you to just keep going (drinking) till you can't remember anything