A Lot Is On the Line | Paris + Rankings

Today is quarterfinals day in Paris, and one of the last chances to grab hold of those crucial ranking points. The last masters tournament of the year leads to the ATP World Tour Finals. Players are desperately trying to grab hold of last minute ranking points to make it to London. The race is on.

Murray grasped hold of a spot in the top 8 by beating Grigor Dimitrov in the 3rd Round in a fantastic performance. Andy has had a great end to the season so far, winning in Vienna and Valencia. He will play Novak Djokovic in a battle to reach the semi finals.

David Ferrer wants a spot, but he must make the final of Paris to guarantee his place in London.

Milos Raonic is also very close, he is currently number 10 in the race, and must do better than David Ferrer in the tournament to overtake in the race. Beating Federer in the QF was a huge boost, lifting him higher in the race.

Due to Rafa's withdrawal, the top 9 will qualify, not the top 8. This gives the players further down the race a lifeline. The race is so incredibly close at the moment. You can keep track of the live race here: http://live-tennis.eu/race

The end of year number 1 spot is up for grabs. Djokovic and Federer are very close, 490 points apart. Federer has managed to rise up the rankings at the end of the year, helped by Rafa's huge loss of points due to absence. However, Federer's loss to Raonic sets him back further for reaching that top spot…

A title in Paris is now so important for Djokovic and end of year world number 1.

It's all about numbers at the end of the season. Lot's of matches are becoming so much more important, players want the win that little bit more, especially those who are trying to grab on to as many points as possible.

Who will make it to London? Who will end the year as number 1?

An exciting few days in Paris await…


@rafanadaladdict

Rafael Nadal Draws 2014 Season To a Close

Yesterday (24th October) marked the end of Rafa's 2014 season. He lost to Borna Coric 6-2 7-6 in the quarterfinals of Basel. Rafa was playing very out of sorts, he produced huge amounts of errors, and it definitely wasn't like Rafa Nadal out there… He fought on as much as he could, of course, but in the end his body wasn't going to let him win.

Earlier in the month when he was first diagnosed with appendicitis, he took a harsh course of antibiotics to reduce the symptoms and try to put back surgery. These stopped pain for a few weeks, but made him tired and weak. He said he got tired very easily and therefore could not play to the intensity he would have liked to.

He played well in Basel up to the QF, producing good wins. It's always hard with Rafa because we often don't know what's going on. He doesn't like to talk about his health very much, but in reality is he's been struggling the last 4-5 months.

In a press conference after the match yesterday he talked about his loss and plans for the rest of the year. He had already announced withdrawal from the Paris Masters earlier, but now confirmed he would also miss the ATP World Tour Finals in London. He officially announced the close of his 2014 season.

Rafa said that he would have treatment on his back for a few days, as it had not been 100% since Melbourne. He will have his appendix finally taken out in surgery on November 3rd. Rafa will rest for 5 weeks before practicing again.

That's a lot of information all at once, and it obviously confirms to us that Rafa had been struggling with his back the whole year, which is very sad to hear.

It will be January 2015 when we next see Rafa play tennis competitively. It's yet again another long wait to get through.

However, I am delighted Rafa is finally taking action to sort his health out, I believe that after a couple of months of recovery he will be raring to go and be back better than ever.

Goodbye 2014, you've been… a roller coaster.

Bring it on, 2015.

Rafa + The Australian Open

I've surely made it clear by now that next year one of my goals on behalf of Rafa is him winning the Australian Open. Obviously we can't do anything about that, its up to him, but I'm pretty sure it's in the back of his mind too.. After the washout 2014 and disaster Australian Open final, its about time we watch Rafa bite another trophy down under.

If Rafa wins the Australian Open again some time (ideally 2015), he would be the proud owner of 15 slam titles, just 2 away from Federer. I want to see him win in Melbourne, as I wasn't around for the first time in 2009.

Rafa has had bad luck so many times at the Australian Open, its like a cursed tournament for him. Let's take it back to the start, and re-live the good and the bad Australian Open moments…


2004

Rafa reached the third round, losing to Lleyton Hewitt in three sets. This was Rafa's first Australian Open appearance.

2005

Rafa improved in Melbourne by one match, this time he still lost the Lleyton Hewitt, but in the fourth round. 

2006

This was the first time Rafa missed the Australian Open, due to his foot injury. 

2007

Progress was still being made for Rafa. In 2007 he reached the quarterfinals beating Murray along the way, he lost to Fernando Gonzalez. 

2008

It just kept getting better for Rafa (his outfits certainly weren't however!) In 2008 he reached the semi finals, but he was beaten by Jo Wilfried Tsonga. 

2009

All the hard work finally paid off! After years of trying, Rafa finally won the Australian Open 2009! He breezed through the early rounds, but in the semi finals playing Verdasco, the match lasted 5 hours 14 minutes, the second longest match ever at the Australian Open. In the final he played a familiar face, Roger Federer, who he beat in 5 sets. 

2010

Rafa was put under pressure being defending champion in 2010. He reached the quarterfinals where he played Andy Murray. In the third set Rafa retired 3-0 down due to pain in his right knee. This was where it seriously all began… the long road of knee injuries. 

2011

After a fantastic 2010, including 3 grand slams, Rafa was aiming to win 4 majors in a row. He reached the quarterfinals where he played his friend and fellow Spaniard, David Ferrer. Unfortunately, Rafa suffered a hamstring injury early in their match and therefore lost in straight sets. Rafa's grand slam streak had ended. 

2012

Rafa was having a successful 2012 in Australia. He reached the final beating Berdych and Federer along the way. Rafa had reached the final of all 4 slams consecutively. In a 5 hour 53 minute final (the longest grand slam final ever) Rafa was beaten by Djokovic in 5 sets. An incredible effort, but not enough. 

2013- A 7 month left knee injury layoff included missing the Australian Open. A very difficult time for Rafa and his fans. 2013 was a Rafa-less Australia Open, due to a stomach virus. We had to wait for the return...

2014

In 2014 Rafa played a fantastic tournament, reaching the final and again, beating Federer along the way. He was all set to play Stanislas Wawrinka in the final. In the practice at the start of the match, Rafa felt slight pain in his lower back, but carried on. Gradually as the match progressed it started to get increasingly painful, even to the point he was wincing in agony, and could hardly hit the ball. He refused to retire. Booing from the crowd and outrage from Stan added to the heartbreak of the situation. By far the worst moment I've ever had to experience with Rafa. A very unlucky tournament.

(Sorry for making you sad for looking at this picture)

9 years of the Australian Open, and we have won once. It's about time we add to the trophy cabinet. This year was so awful and heartbreaking, that I want to make up for it. 

That's the goal, a 2nd Australian Open title. I'm sure Rafa and his fans would all love that.

No pressure, Rafael…

@rafanadaladdict

Looking Ahead- 2015

This year has been… complicated.

Let's Recap...

It's been a long and treacherous 2014 for Rafans. We started off 2014 with a bang, a Doha title. Then it all went wrong… Rafa was playing amazing in the Australian Open until the disastrous final where he obtained his back injury. Very emotional times for us. Since then it's never been the same.

Straight after the Australian Open Rafa won in Rio, but that definitely was not how the rest of the year panned out. No way was it that simple. Poor tournaments ran from Indian Wells to Barcelona. The clay season was Rafa's worst for…. well, a long time. A title was won in Madrid, although it wasn't ideal due to Nishikori retiring in the final. Rome was an improvement, although we lost to Djokovic in the final. A huge amount of doubt built up. Is this Djokovic's year? Will Rafa still win Roland Garros? Stress ran through every Rafan's veins.

Then something amazing happened. A 9th Roland Garros. It was hands down the proudest I'd ever felt, and I loved every second of the win. Finally we had something to celebrate, and it was unforgettable.

Wimbledon was a big improvement of the last few years, and Rafa was finally getting his health in order after the back struggles earlier. We reached the 4th Round, which was a big improvement from last years 1st round exit.

Things were looking up. However, that wasn't the end of it.

All at once there was news splashed across every tennis article 'Nadal withdraws from Toronto and Cincinnati' Ah, the wrist injury. Obtained in practice, it was a simple case of bad luck. Rafa's had a lot of that.

The recovery took longer than expected (no surprises there), and Rafa withdrew from the US Open. I was devastated, he would miss the whole North American season he had so much success at last year.

Finally it was time for his return after 3 lonely months, Beijing. Not expecting much, he reached the quarter finals. Shanghai was next.

Believe it or not, that was not the end of the bad news. Appendicitis.

Rafa lost his first match in Shanghai, but he carried on- amazing.

Basel was going well, until a match vs Coric. Rafa lost 6-2 7-6. He was totally out of sorts and it really was disastrous. In a press conference afterwards he said he will have treatment on his back next week (still not fine since Jan) and his appendix will come out on November 3rd.

2014 has now finished for Rafa. That's it. No Paris, no London, just recovery. Good riddance.


2015

Next year owes us something great. My ultimate aim for Rafa is to win the Australian Open for the 2nd time, and a 10th Roland Garros. That's the dream. Rafa got so close to winning the Australian Open this year, and I want another shot. And well, a 10th French Open, that would just be incredible. I feel very protective over Roland Garros, I will always want him to retain the title.

I hope next year will bring him good health, as this year has definitely not given that. I hope to celebrate a lot more. It's been a hard season, the hardest ever. I could not be happier to say goodbye to 2014.

Next year I want to make it a good one.

I'm so excited, it can't get worse than 2014, right? Bring it on 2015.

Shanghai and a Troubled Appendix

It's been a roller coaster few days. Rafa lost in Beijing to Klizan last week, but said his wrist was fine so he played on in Shanghai.

Once he arrived in Shanghai he wasn't seen. No practice, no photos, nothing. It was later revealed to us that he had appendicitis and had been staying in his hotel and making brief visits to the hospital. Not what we wanted to hear the day before a match.

Rafa is Rafa, so he refused to withdraw and got ready for his match on Wednesday. We knew it would be a loss. He never retired though, he puts up with the pain. A long couple of hours later Feliciano Lopez won 6-3 7-6. It was a fight, but he was suffering from a serious condition, how could anyone expect him to win?

It was a very worrying match. Rafans know better than anyone that health is the number 1 priority. I didn't care he lost, but I was distraught to know he was in pain. Rafa has taken very aggressive antibiotics to stop the pain. These were positive for him because they meant he could put back surgery even further, but they made him very weak and dizzy.

Appendicitis is an inflammation of the appendix, and doesn't ever go away completely. Once you've got it, in most cases at some point you'll have to take it out in an operation. Recovery time is not too long, but it can be inconvenient. If you have it taken out early (like Rafa), the recovery time should be between 2-4 weeks, but it depends. Rafa plans to have his appendix taken out at the end of the year, after the World Tour Finals. We hope his problem will go away until them, and will not bother him in these last few important tournaments.

We only had Rafa back for 3 matches, but now he's gone again, with yet another health issue. It's endless, and very very hard for us.

The sad truth is there will be a time in the near future when after one of the issues he will no longer be able to get back up. We need to think realistically. One time there will not be a glorious comeback from an injury period, and we need to prepare ourselves for that.

I miss Rafa already, and to know he's been in pain kills me. On a side note, Rafa is now number 3 in the rankings due to his tournament absences, but that is NOT the important thing. Rafa needs to be healthy and happy to win tournaments, and he is not.

Let's wish Rafa a speedy recovery and give him strength at the end of a difficult year. #GetWellSoonRafa

@rafanadaladdict