Video: Djokovic Feels Like…

Not leaving anything to the imagination, Novak Djokovic told the Center Court crowd at the US Open yesterday exactly how he felt after defeating countryman Viktor Troicki.

Video: Federer’s Latest Tweener

Not waiting until the final weekend to pull off the shot of the event this time around, No. 2 seed Roger Federer ignited Monday’s night session with his latest tweener shot.

Some have argued that Federer’s tweener against Novak Djokovic during last year’s semifinals was better, but there’s no doubting that his latest trick shot was one of the all time greats.

Radio Podcast: Aug 31, 2010, US Open Preview

Nima and Dan sit down and discuss the final Grand Slam of the 2010 season.  Who looks good, who’s already out, and what you can expect for the next two weeks.

As always, you can alternatively listen to the #1 tennis PodCast via iTunes and never miss another episode. It is very easy and completely free.

Photos: Adidas Barricade 10th Anniversary Party

What would the US Open be without its monsoon of pre-tournament player and sponsor parties?

With Adidas celebrating the 10th anniversary of their flagship Barricade shoe, the sporting giant hosted a party at the their Soho New York location with Andy Murray, Justine Henin, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, and Ana Ivanovic.

Taking questions, and posing for numerous photos, the players and fans had a great evening.

Pictures courtesy of GEM Tennis.

US Open Men’s Preview Video

With the US Open starting on Monday, usopen.org has released a comprehensive and informative men’s draw preview video.

Federer to Play Nadal in Zürich

Roger Federer told his fans on Facebook today that he will face off against Rafael Nadal in a charity match in Zürich, Switzerland.

The contest, which will take place on December 21, will be called “The Match for Africa.”

Money raised from the event will go toward the Roger Federer Foundation. A promo video of the event can be found below.

Enjoy.

NIKE Primetime Knockout Event Photos

Our good friends at GEM Tennis attended the Nike Primetime Knockout Event on Wednesday evening, and were able to take a variety of stellar pictures.

Taking photos on behalf of the New York Junior Tennis League, GEM Tennis got up and personal with the game’s greatest stars.

Enjoy the pictures and check out the NYJTL as well.

Video: Novak Djokovic’s Intensity

In this great video and analysis brought to you by our good friends and GEM Tennis, Serbian star Novak Djokovic is featured at the Rogers Cup against eventual finalist Roger Federer.

For those of you who want to move and focus like the pros, this video is a must see.

The video is provided at the link below.

Enjoy.

Novak Djokovic’s Intensity.

Rafael Nadal: Asphalt Ambition

Rafael Nadal could not have asked for a cleaner bill of health heading into this year’s US Open.

His knees have been tape-less for the entire hard-court season, and his abdominal issues of a year ago have completely heeled.

In a strange sort of way though, it’s odd to see Nadal with no niggling injuries heading into the year’s final Major. But to his credit, he’s planned his tournament schedule accordingly this year, and his body is reaping the rewards.

However, with that being said, Nadal’s summer results in Toronto and Cincinnati were pale in comparison to previous years where he was injured and torn. If anything, Nadal’s clean bill of health this summer has been more of a hindrance than a helping hand.

Now, it’s important to hear me out on this one before conclusions are drawn from an injury-free Nadal. With the Spaniard in full working order, his shot-selection has suffered to a greater degree because he’s not forced to step up his game in the same manner that he would if he was forced to conserve energy or protect an injury.

Sitting court side for his four matches in Toronto, I witnessed an erratic and confused Nadal, one who was reluctant to win with his weight of shot, and relied more on his sheer will to defeat his opponents. Crashing out to Andy Murray in the semifinals, Nadal later mentioned that his serve was “horrible,” and that his game would have to become more aggressive if he was to have a realistic chance at winning the US Open.

There’s no doubt that Murray remains a serious contender to capture his maiden Slam title starting next week, and his triumph in Canada backed up his proficiency on hard-courts. Even an ultra confident Nadal has previously struggled against Murray on the harder surfaces, irrespective of being injured or 100 percent healthy.

Nadal’s form would turn from bad to worse in Cincinnati, further magnifying his troubles on hard-courts, while highlighting his uncharacteristically poor body language . Breezing past an overmatched Taylor Dent in his opening contest, Nadal had all sorts of difficulty with No. 32 ranked Julien Benneteau. Trailing by a set and having to save a match point in the second set tiebreak, Nadal persevered into the quarterfinals on the strength of his fitness, and the heat in Cincinnati. A 28-year-old Benneteau had given Nadal a serious scare, but his lost opportunity in the second set was enough to end his tournament.  Although Nadal had managed to reach quarterfinals, his memorizing clay and grass-court form had yet to make an appearance during the summer circuit.

Matching up with a spirited Marcos Baghdatis in front of a packed Friday night crowd, Nadal continued to display his late contact point on his forehand return, and his lack of pace and movement on his first and second serves. Where Baghdatis smoked 18 aces and achieved 87 percent of his first serve points won, Nadal was substantially less productive on his delivery. Winning a mere 71 percent of his first serve points (a respectable percentage on clay-courts), Nadal hit four aces and committed three double faults.

The top seed was able to scrape through the second set and force a deciding set against the Cypriot, but his inability to find the range on his forehand—his best shot by a long way—cost him a crucial break of serve in the eighth game of set, and ultimately the match. Walking off the court with his racket and clothing bags hanging off his shoulders, Nadal employed a dazed and resentful look on his face: He knew that the seven matches that he had played leading into the US Open were by no means convincing, and that his form would be difficult to improve on with no tournaments left before New York.

When asked if he thought his matches in Toronto and Cincinnati were enough preparation heading into the Open, Nadal provided perhaps the most unsure answer of his rock solid career.

“I hope so. (Smiling.) What I can say? I don’t know. I don’t know. We will see in two weeks the result in New York.”

That is about as unsure of an reply that you will ever hear from the eight-time Slam champ.

Could the pressure of a culminating Open victory be preventing Nadal from playing his best tennis? When thinking that one through, I would be more inclined to say that the Spaniard is struggling to find the penetration off his forehand more than anything else, and the fact that his best shot continued to land short and wide of the sideline through the North American events left him perplexed.

Nadal has seldom had timing or movement issues on clay and grass because the sorter surfaces accentuate his devastating spin. The result of the spin friendly surfaces allow Nadal to catch his return of serve in a better contact point pocket, which results in his point construction becoming more lethal.

Warm up events can only tell part of the story leading into Major championships, but Nadal’s erratic play during the first part of August (especially the 40 plus errors that he committed against Baghdatis) were certainly the entire concern for the Spaniard’s Flushing Meadows march.

Nadal spoke about his forehand errors after losing to Baghdatis, and although he mentioned that his backhand was the problem, I would tend to disagree.

“Sometimes. I think I have to play aggressive, but sometimes I am playing too aggressive with the forehand, no, trying to have more winners too fast. So that’s another thing that keep improving. But maybe it’s because I wanted to protect the backhand, no?”

If there was one stroke that I thought Nadal hit well throughout his two events this summer, it was his backhand. He didn’t rip it cross-court like he has at the French Open, but his ability to sneak a slice down-the-line, or loop his two-hander cross-court, was evident throughout his seven matches.

There’s no secret that the courts in New York are some of slickest and fastest battle fields in the world. The forehands of Pete Sampras, Roger Federer, and most recent winner Juan Martin del Potro have found ease and efficiency when attacking and transitioning to victory. However, Nadal’s asphalt ambition for this year Open will have been slightly derailed by his lack of reaching a warm up final, and more importantly, not playing anywhere near his highest level.

There certainly remains a lot of work for Nadal to do heading into New York next week. His willingness to fight through seven best of five set hard-court matches is a trait that he’s had from his early teens. His meticulous rituals and training regimes will continue to stay intact, while the crowd will be by his side for the duration of stay in the Big Apple.

If this summer has taught us anything about Nadal it’s the following: Regardless of injury, lack of match play, or his discomfort towards the hard-courts in New York, the spin oriented Spaniard will give everything he has to not only complete his Grand Slam collection, but further add to a tremendous year for Spanish sports.

I honestly can’t recall a year where I’ve seen Nadal struggle more than he has coming into the Open, but if there’s one player who can summon the ability to turn around his luck and achieve the seemingly impossible, it’s Nadal.

by: Nima Naderi

Radio Podcast Aug 23, 2010. Cincinnati Wrap Up

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