Sunday, 04 June 2017 / Published in ATP Tour, Rafael Nadal, Roland Garros

Rafael Nadal – From 5 Rows Back At Roland Garros

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The Train Is Rolling.

Rafael Nadal is an absolute joke right now…

G’day from Roland Garros!

I want to share with you what it was like watching Rafael Nadal from five rows back on Court Suzanne Lenglen today. Nadal defeated Roberto Bautista Agut 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 in the 4th round – like he wasn’t even there. Let’s get one thing straight… Roberto is one of the best players in the world (No. 18), and Rafa absolutely torched him.

For those of you who were too young to watch Rafa win nine Roland Garros titles in 10 years from 2005-2014, no need to be disappointed. The 2017 version may actually be better.

I want to share FIVE things with you that stood out to me watching Rafa. I actually wrote a similar story about Roger Federer in Miami a couple of months ago. Here’s the link to that story – Roger Federer From 3 Rows Back

1. Ferocity

The last time I was at Roland Garros was 2013. I coached Alex Kuznetsov, who lost to Lucas Pouille in the first round. One afternoon I was in the locker room, and my locker was right next to the walkway down the middle. I put my rackets and bag away in the locker and went to take a step to my left to walk out. I almost died. I didn’t hear him coming, but Rafa was in the midst of his primal pre-match routine and was doing a full sprint through the locker room. One second earlier and he would have completely cleaned me up. That ferocity flashed back at me today watching him from so close. He was unrelenting. During the point. Between the points. Primal focus. A runaway train…

2. Defense

Nadal’s offense impresses everyone. His defense impresses me. He is the master of using the entire court from the net, all the way back to the back fence. He loves to start back and neutralize. He loves to let the ball slow down so that he can easily control it and pummel it from deep in the court. It creates the same result as if he was standing further up in the court. Very, very few players can be so far back in the court and artificially make it seem like they are not. He is so good stretched out wide on both sides. He slides perfectly. He slices perfectly. He defends like a man possessed. And then he finds a way to get on offense and ruin your afternoon.

3. Rules

The rules don’t apply to Nadal. If Bautista Agut hit a ball to Nadal’s backhand, Nadal should hit a backhand. Right? Wrong. Nadal is a walking, talking, eating, breathing forehand. Just look at the picture above. Nadal is standing in the Deuce court hitting a forehand – that Bautista Agut intended for Nadal’s backhand. Nadal so far through four matches has 62 forehand winners and just 24 backhand winners. If Bautista Agut shanked a ball into the Nutella Waffle concession stand outside the stadium, Nadal would sprint out there… and hit a forehand. The backhand rule simply doesn’t apply.

4. 2nd Serves

2nd serves are not a weapon. They are a liability, especially on clay. At the 2016 French Open, the tournament average for 2nd serve points won was just 51%. It’s exactly the same through Week 1 this year. It’s a roll of the dice. A flip of the coin. Not so for Nadal. The Spaniard is winning an absurdly high 77% of his second serve points through four rounds, to be ranked No.1 in this category in Paris in 2017. It’s actually better than his first serve performance, where he is winning 72% of points. That’s beyond comprehension. It’s absurd, with powdered sugar on top.

5. Build

When Nadal is on defense, you already get the feeling he is a hop, skip and a jump away from offense. Our eyes are watching the difficult shot he is currently hitting. His mind is already hitting a forehand winner five shots from now. It’s chess. You make a move. He dominates you with his counter move. Rarely (and I mean rarely) did one of the premier clay court players in the world (in Bautista Agut), put Rafa in a hole he could not dig himself out of today. Nadal is seeing the court so well. He is building points like Julius Caesar built an empire.

I never take for granted the great seats, and fantastic access that my job allows. Watching Rafa from so close is a privilege. The performance and professionalism he exudes is world-class. It was so much fun to watch him from so close today.

All the best,

Craig

The practice court is clearly broken. Here’s the proof.

Points are "front loaded". By far the majority of the action, and the winning, takes place in THE FIRST 4 SHOTS. The practice court is full of long rallies. Matches are dominated by short rallies. There is a massive disconnect occurring.

We spend too much time grinding, banging balls up and down the middle of the court – that have no real benefit to winning tennis matches.

There are 3 specific rally lengths in tennis. Here is their percentage breakdown of total points.

0-4 Shots = 70%
5-8 Shots = 20%
9+ Shots = 10%

The First 4 Shots is specifically the serve, return, Serve +1 groundstroke and Return +1 groundstroke. Those are normally the shots that get practiced the least, but matter the most to winning tennis matches.

The net is an extremely high percentage place to be!

If you love playing tennis for fun, spend as much time at the baseline as you like. But if you compete – if the score matters – then you must turn your attention to the net to maximize your potential.

The “herd mentality” in tennis thinks it’s too tough to approach the net in today’s game. The conversation starts with improved string technology, more powerful rackets, and finishes with stronger, faster athletes. The herd think approaching is a relic of the past. The herd is WRONG!

AVERAGE WIN %
Baseline = 46%
Net = 66%

Data from ALL Grand Slams provides the facts about approach and volley, and the data is crystal clear – it’s immensely better than staying back at the baseline, grinding for a living.

The baseline is a tough place to create separation. Here's how to do it.

At the 2012 US Open, only 7 men and 14 women had a winning percentage from the baseline. At Wimbledon 2016, Andy Murray won the title only winning 52% of his baseline points - and he is one of the very best at it in the world!

Num3ers deeply explores the data that rules points, especially from the back of the court. Take a "deep dive" into all three rally lengths (0-4, 5-8, 9+), and winner and errors totals from the elite level of our game. The numbers will shock you!

All 4 Grand Slams

Forcing Errors = 41% Men / 37% Women
Winners = 32% Men / 29% Women
Unforced Errors = 27% Men / 34% Women

Num3ers is very much like putting a jigsaw puzzle together. It's about bringing together different data sets together to create the big picture.

Every recorded match from the 2015 Australian Open - Rd2 to the final.

There is a lot happening on a doubles court. Situations and strategies are constantly being adjusted to create mis-matches with court position. It's hard to keep track of - until now. Dou8les Num3ers is the most comprehensive analysis of doubles data in our sport. The focus is on how a point ends, and it's broken down eight ways to Sunday. Specifically, you find critical information on:

Winners rise to the #1 way a point ends (over forced & unforced errors)

- The last shot of the rally is overwhelmingly struck at the net.
- Center Window: the most important part of a doubles court to control.
- Stephen Huss: an in-depth interview on Wimbledon's Centre Court with the 2005 Wimbledon Doubles Champion.

Dou8les Num3ers leaves no stone unturned. Percentage breakdowns of how often the server or receiver hits the last shot highlight the dramatic influence of the serve. The last shot of the rally is significant, and is broken down into the following categories: volleys, overheads, passing shots, lobs and groundstrokes.

When you play a match, you actually play two matches.

When you walk out onto a tennis court, there are two matches that you are about to play. The first is during the point - a part of the match that you have spent a lot of time preparing for on the practice court. But there is a second match, that takes place in the 20 seconds between the points. This is where the mental and emotional aspects of our sport kick in.

Let's face it, there will be adversity in almost every tennis match that you play. The storm clouds are coming. How bug they are, and how long they last for, are up to you.

Between the points is very tennis specific. It provides a roadmap for the 20 seconds between the points, teaching how to handle the adversity that will surely come, and how to build on the successes that will also be present. Your mind is your biggest asset in a match, and Between the Points takes your hand off the self destruct button and stops you beating yourself.

You don't have to be good at everything, but you have got to be good at something.

You can break tennis down into four key elements - serving, returning, rallying and approaching. Each part has specific patterns of play that consistently deliver higher winning percentages than the others. No more guessing. No more opinions. All facets of our sport are covered in this exceptional product, clearly outlining what patterns to gravitate to, and how to best construct the practice court. Data comes primarily from the 2015 Australian Open.

Building Blocks

MEN = 70% errors / 30% winners
WOMEN = 74% errors / 26% winners

Forcing errors is the best way to construct a point.
You can simply break tennis down into primary and secondary patterns of play - and they are all covered here. Primary patterns include serve and return direction, forehands v backhands, and the best way to approach the net. Secondary patterns include drop shots, serve & volley and 1st volley options. If you play tournaments, this product will greatly help you simplify the singles court.

The conversation starts & ends with the Center Window.

The doubles court is like an hourglass. There are two big ends, but a small neck in the middle where all the action happens. Once you learn the power of the Center Window, where you stand to start the point will take on a lot more significance.

Doubles is a lot more about situations, with four people on the court all "dancing" with one another. Learn all the best doubles patterns, broken down for the server, returner, server's partner and the returner's partner.

Doubles Situations

The "J" - the most ideal movement for the returner's partner to attack the net.

The "V" - a better way of understanding where the server's partner should move to.

Volley Targets - there are four main areas to attack. Know which ones are higher percentage. Beach Volleyball - the idea of a "setter" and "spiker" is ideal for the doubles court.

There are certain parts of the court that the ball travels to a lot, and other low percentage areas that you really don't want to cover at all - like the alley! In general, the serving team wants to keep the ball in the middle of the court as much as possible (to help the server's partner), while the returning team benefits from hitting wider and creating more chaos in the point.

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Rafael Nadal – From 5 Rows Back At Roland Garros

Dirtballer Video

The Train Is Rolling.

Rafael Nadal is an absolute joke right now…