Rafa out of Aus Open ?

Miriambee · Futures level

RE: Rafa out of Aus Open ?

eblunt · Club Coach

Miriambee wrote:
If Fed doesn't play Muzza will reach the no2 spot quicker, too.

That's exactly what I was suggesting ... biggrin

daisy · County player

Miriambee wrote:
Rafa out of Indian Wells and Miami - announced today.

Is that absolutely official via the TD???

They are often reticent about announcing major player withdrawals.

I know it has been reported by the Spanish newspaper Marca but I'm always wary until something appears on the website page or via the player's official website/spokesperson and so far that hasn't yet happened.

Carole Bouchard @carole_bouchard

Marca says Nadal is out of Indian Wells and Miami. No quotes from Nadal yet. http://www.marca.com/2013/02/26/tenis/1361879399.html

indiana · Tennis legend

Fed only earned 45 points in Miami last year anyway, going out at the L32 stage. So he's not missing out on defending much there ( and Andy's defending 600 points ). Though Fed has 1000 from winning IW and Andy just 10 from there.

Andy really needs to be stepping up on his relatively poot Masters results of last year, Miami and Shanghai finals aside. On the face of it, it looks to me that we'll be into the clay season at the earliest before there will be much likelihood of Andy getting the no 2 spot off Fed.

I see Djokovic and Fed playing Dubai this week. I don't like the fact that Andy has gone missing since the Aussie Open.

Re Nadal, it will be a great pity if we are going to be seeing much less of him in the future on hard courts.

eblunt · Club Coach

From the BBC website today :

"Nadal is scheduled to play his first hard-court events in Indian Wells and Miami next month but will make a final decision once he is finished in Acapulco. "

eblunt · Club Coach

Nadal also confirmed he would play in next week's Indian Wells hard-court tournament in America, despite speculation he might miss the event to protect his knee.

(BBC website)

eblunt · Club Coach

eblunt wrote:
Miriambee wrote:
Rafa out of Indian Wells and Miami - announced today.
Doesn't surprise me. He's either injured again, or conserving himself for the clay season. Either way, I don't really expect him to ever play these tournaments again, and possible only 1 other GS apart from RG each year.

On a related note, I see Fed is missing Miami as well, on the 'over 12 years and 600 games played by a 31 year old' rule. I can see Djok and Muzza only ever playing finals against each other for quite some time to come now .....

Apart from RG, he's won 1 GS match in the last 18 months, and IMO I think it's quite possible he could miss the US open again. His knees are shot, so apart from RG, which is by far Andy's least successful surface, I really don't see Rafa standing in Andy's way at slams any more.

Fed is now a spent force, I think it will be downhill quite fast for him from now on.

With so few teenagers coming through ( only 1 in the top 100 ? ) , it's really shaping up now to be a whole load of Djok v Andy finals now for the next few years (injuries aside)

RJA · Hall of fame

eblunt wrote:
With so few teenagers coming through ( only 1 in the top 100 ? ) , it's really shaping up now to be a whole load of Djok v Andy finals now for the next few years (injuries aside)

Only one in the top 200, Jiri Vesely, who turns 20 in a few weeks. He might just make the top 100 before turning 20 if he does well in a challenger event next week.