Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer shared some very interesting thoughts in their interviews after the French Open final which Nadal won 3:1.

Here are top 5 things you can learn from each player – mental, tactical, technical or physical tips.

ROGER FEDERER

Photo by FFT

Q. Did you have a specific strategy going in it or did you just want to feel your way into the match and see what he was going to do and see how you could counter that?

ROGER FEDERER: No, against Rafael, I always said I need a game plan. Against other guys, I can do that, but not against him.

1. Have a game plan. That means you have a general strategy and additional plan B or even C. Your opponent may also get used to your shots or patterns of play and eventually you’ll need to change them.

Q. You’d have to say that the failure to convert on all the breakpoints was probably one of the keys to the match. Would you agree with that? And what else happened that you think was the reason for the loss?

ROGER FEDERER: Well, I mean, I guess that would be the easy way out, just say, “Okay, I missed too many opportunities, otherwise I would have won.” But you know, it’s just not this way.

So you always have to look at your opposition, and Rafael is tough on breakpoints, you know. He’s the toughest guy on clay. So I knew that I would have to take my chances.

There is one way, you know, to create chances, but then you have to convert them, too. I never convert 100% of my breakpoint opportunities in one season, so you need to remain focused.

2. Understand that there is nothing you can control. Roger did well to create a break point, but Nadal did even better to counter that. In opinion Roger forced the break points too much; risking more than he risked before when he created them.

Combine his high risks with Nadal’s percentage play and you know why Roger couldn’t convert.

Q. At which point in the match you felt like I’m going to lose this thing?

ROGER FEDERER: Last point, maybe.

3. Never give up. Not even on the last point. The most amazing come back that I remember was when Chanda Rubin came back from 0:5, 0:40 in the third set to beat Jana Novotna in the 1995 French Open. She saved 9 match points and eventually won 8:6 in the third set.

Q. If you let yourself, what strokes or tactics would you say let you down the most?

ROGER FEDERER: My opponent was tough, made it hard for me. That was — because I can’t particularly say my backhand or my forehand was bad or my volley or my serving. It was all okay, you know. It was just a tough opponent.

4. It’s not always your fault. Roger realizes that he cannot play his best tennis all the time and gives credit to Nadal for being able to play at a high level for longer time. Appreciate your opponent’s skills and work on improving your own even more.

Q. You defeated him in Hamburg, but when he arrived here at Roland Garros, we felt he was undefeatable. Is this the feeling you had when you walked out of the courts?

ROGER FEDERER: No, not at all. I know I can win. So I’m not going to walk on the court thinking he is undefeatable.

Maybe he’s undefeatable for the others, but I also knew if somebody was capable of winning against him in this tournament, that was me. And I’m the only one who managed to win one set against him.

5. Believe in yourself. Even if the current situation shows that you are not the winner, that doesn’t mean you’ll never be. Keep trying, keep fighting.

Did you know that Roger Federer lost 14 times in the first round of the ATP in the year 2000? Many players would lose faith in themselves after so many loses.

(Roger Federer full interview)

RAFAEL NADAL

Photo by FFT

Q. In the final set, you are constantly under pressure to hold serve because, you know, that’s the only way for Roger to get back into the match, and you had served so well in the fourth set.

Would you comment a bit about the pressure you felt to keep holding serve, time after time.

RAFAEL NADAL: Sure, I feel a lot of pressure, no? But, well, I play good my games. He had some mistakes with the returns. That’s helping me a little bit.

But I play good with my forehand, serving well, serving with good security. It’s fine? Security? Okay.

With security and one serve in his backhand for try to touch the first ball with my forehand, with just try to have the control the point like this.

1. Use your weapons and try to control the point. Nadal has this simple game plan for his service games: serve to the backhand side, try to control the point with forehand. What plan do you have after your serve? Hit the ball?

Q. You saved 16 breakpoints out of 17. Especially those ten in the first set were the decisive ones, you think, they decided more than the others, because if you had lost the first set would it have been more and more difficult?

RAFAEL NADAL: … Well, I know if I play a long match, I have little bit more advantage — not more, because Roger is very good physically, too. But my feeling is that. And that’s it. That was important moment, sure.

2. Confidence doesn’t only come from the mind; it comes from your body too. Nadal is not afraid to play long matches. On the contrary, he is so confident in his fitness level, that he feels he is even better than Federer.

How do you get to this belief? Work harder than other players on the physical part of the game. Get your edge anywhere you can. One more thing: working hard has nothing to do with your talent.

Perhaps you will face more talented players in your career but you can still beat them. Working hard is 99% of your success.

Q. But, you know, today so many of the points were played almost at Federer’s pace, three, four, five shots, and still you were able to win most of those points.

Is this something that maybe you were helped by the hard court season in terms of finishing points, or were you just ready for anything?

RAFAEL NADAL: … But I know I can go to the net and have better chances than before. I can play little bit more aggressive with my forehand. I improved little bit the backhand more, too. So I feel better player.

3. Keep improving, never become totally satisfied with your level. You think your forehand is good? Can you compare to Nadal’s backhand? Surely not, and yet he was still working on it (hours and hours) and improved it.

Q. Was there anything strange about the way he played today? The way he slowed down?

RAFAEL NADAL: Well, I think always the finals is difficult play very good, especially, when you are playing final of Grand Slam, and important like this for him, and for me too, no?

The important moments just try to be with the calm. I know it’s always is very, very tough, but just try to be with calm in important moments. I just think about that.

4. Calm down on the big points. Your emotions will try to take over, don’t let that happen. Take time, breathe, focus on your game plan, just do it.

Q. Is it possible to explain how difficult it is to come into this event when ‘99% of the people are expecting you to win, and you do win?

RAFAEL NADAL: It’s tough. It’s always is difficult. But I try always think about me, about how is my feelings, not think about what is the feelings of the people. Just think about myself. I think about find my best performance, my best tennis.

And for the rest, I know I’m going to be — before the tournament, I know I’m going to be little bit more nervous than for other tournaments. I need to accept that for try to play good here.

5. Focus on your performance not the outcome. Nadal is under a lot of pressure if he listens to other people. He realizes that and just focuses on himself and his level play. He knows that he cannot control the outcome but he can control his effort.

That’s why he is not that nervous. He is not worried about winning or losing, he thinks only about giving his best and that is within his control.

(Rafael Nadal full interview)

Related posts:


• How Federer Outthought Nadal At The Masters
• How Roger Federer And Rafael Nadal Played The Final Of Wimbledon 2007
• Why Tennis Players Fail To Convert On Match Points
• 5 Reasons Why Nadal Beat Federer in the Wimbledon 2008 Final
• Roger’s Revenge

This entry was posted on Monday, June 11th, 2007 at 3:57 am and is filed under French Open, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.