Roger Federer has just defeated Rafael Nadal for the 5th consecutive time (the 4th in 2017). This is an incredible winning streak especially considering the fact that the Spaniard used to “own” Roger before this sequence as he was leading the Swiss 23-10 in head to head matches.
Why I beat Rafa
Soon after winning the final, Roger explained why all of the sudden he is beating Nadal with this kind of consistency. Federer commented
“I’ve not played him so much on clay – that’s helped me not lose there,”
“That’s definitely helpful to avoid the entire clay-court season.
Other than that I think with the bigger racquet head size allows me to come through the ball easier. I do not have to slice the ball as much as I used to against him.
It also helps me on the serve to be honest. My serve has been very consistent ever since changing the racquet and getting used to it. And then just playing from the baseline, trying to be offensive, trying to dictate play as much as possible.
And obviously, Shanghai is playing fast so using that to my advantage. But also maybe my head is screwed on a better way just because I haven’t lost so much of those clay-court matches like I have in the past.”
| NEW BOSS? |
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