By Angela Molchan
Rafael Nadal also known as Rafa is a 22 year old Spanish tennis player. Nadal's Uncle Toni who also is a tennis player introduced tennis to Nadal when he was only 3 years old and has coached him thought his career. Nadal also played football and was force to choose between them at the age of 12 so that his education was not affected because he was playing tennis or football all the time. At the age of 16 Nadal had been ranked as being one of the top 50 tennis players in the world. Nadal being naturally right handed was taught by his uncle Toni to play left handed because he thought
Nadal's two-handed backhand would benefit him with a strong right arm. He uses a full western grip forehand, which allows him to hit a heavy, powerful topspin forehand giving him a bigger margin of error because of the height in which he clears the net and the speed of which the ball drops because of the topspin that is applied to the ball. Nadal uses a Babolat AeroPro Drive without cortex, and his racquet strung is between 50 and 58 pounds.
His clothing is sponsored by Nike. Nadal is known for his unconventional wear, such as sleeveless tops and Capri pants. He wears the Nike Air Max Breathe Cage II shoes[24] which have been customized for him with the famous "Vamos Rafa" written on the side of them.[25] Currently, his shoes display his nickname "Rafa" on one shoe and a logo specifically designed by Nike featuring a stylistic bull's head on the other.
Nadal's career really began to take off in 2002 when he was just 15 years old when he became the ninth player in the open era to win before age 16. In 2003 he became the second youngest male player to rank in the world's top 50 players. In 2004 Nadal won his first singles title. In 2005 Nadal was No. 2 in rankings. They call him The King of Clay because of his abilities on a clay courts. In tournament finals his record was 22 wins and 1 loss and is undefeated in 41 of five sets of matches played on clay. During April 2005 until May of 2007 Nadal won 81 matches in a row making him the owner of the longest single-surface winning streak. Nadal won the French Open in 2006, 2007, and 2008. As of August 2008 Nadal has a 67 wins and 8 losses and has won eight singles titles, including the French Open, Wimbledon, and the Olympic Games. He also had a 32 match winning streak during which he received five titles.Nadal is the number one tennis player in the world and is considered the best spanish player of all time.
Nadal was born in Manacor, Majorca to Sebastián Nadal and Ana María Parera. He has a younger sister named María Isabel. Nadal's upbringing and early years are largely kept private, he has stated growing up his passions were football, tennis, and fishing, and as of 2008 he has been dating María Francesca Perelló,also from Majorca, for three years.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Angela_Molchan
http://EzineArticles.com/?Rafael-Nadal&id=1465928
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
The Baseline - Revisited
By Beth McCaskill
This morning, I awoke to find the Nadal/Fish match being replayed on USA, after I stayed up 'til 2:15 AM to watch it. I decided to check over on The Tennis Channel, as if I'm not getting enough tennis lately, and they were showing the finals of the Mexican Open, between Chela and Horna, 2 South Americans. They looked quite at home on clay. Flipping back and forth between the 2 channels made it clear how different the games are. On clay, from right up on the baseline in the middle of the court, a player can hit a very sharp angle, to just behind the service line on the sideline, and not have an outright winner.
At the US Open, Fish was hitting winners from the baseline, middle, by hitting much less angle, deep near the corners, against Nadal, maybe the best defender on the tour. That is why the aggressive player must get up on the baseline against a great topspinner like Nadal. Fish really did it in the first set. I didn't count, but he hit lots of outright winners because he was standing up at the baseline. Standing up at the baseline has another big advantage, which Fish also made clear. You are that much closer whenever Nadal hit short, which he does quite often because of his spin. There is tremendous advantage to being closer to short balls.
When you get in to a short ball faster, you get to hit bigger angles. On a surface like the US Open, those are winners. Second, if you are hitting an approach shot you usually catch the ball higher and have many more options. There is another important reason to get to a short ball before it falls below the net: you avoid telegraphing your approach. If you are forced to hit an approach shot off a low ball, while you are running forward, you must prepare for your backswing by moving your feet out of the way, so your opponent knows 2 steps earlier, where you are aiming.
Watch a Roddick match. If he approaches from his usual spot, many feet behind the baseline, he catches the ball very low. Watch his opponent. He is already running into position before Roddick strikes the ball. In today's game, giving away your approach is fatal. Watch an early Federer match (HINT: Roger, you are playing deeper now!). When he hits a short ball, he closes fast, reaches it up high, and freezes his opponent by not revealing his approach. Then, half the time, his opponent guesses wrong or moves early and Roger just hits a winner. The rest of the time, because he has caught the ball up high, he drives it with pace, and gets an easy volley back. Off course, all this is contingent upon your willingness to stand at the baseline and be willing to hit many more balls on the rise. It takes guts. It takes confidence. On clay it is more difficult because of the uneven bounces, and frankly it isn't even worth it. At the US Open, on a hard court, against someone like Nadal, that is where the advantage lies.
Contact: Beth McCaskill
Phone: 678-622-3708
Email: BethMcCaskill@TennisPlayersNetwork.com
URL: http://www.TennisPlayersNetwork.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Beth_McCaskill
http://EzineArticles.com/?The-Baseline---Revisited&id=1471128
This morning, I awoke to find the Nadal/Fish match being replayed on USA, after I stayed up 'til 2:15 AM to watch it. I decided to check over on The Tennis Channel, as if I'm not getting enough tennis lately, and they were showing the finals of the Mexican Open, between Chela and Horna, 2 South Americans. They looked quite at home on clay. Flipping back and forth between the 2 channels made it clear how different the games are. On clay, from right up on the baseline in the middle of the court, a player can hit a very sharp angle, to just behind the service line on the sideline, and not have an outright winner.
At the US Open, Fish was hitting winners from the baseline, middle, by hitting much less angle, deep near the corners, against Nadal, maybe the best defender on the tour. That is why the aggressive player must get up on the baseline against a great topspinner like Nadal. Fish really did it in the first set. I didn't count, but he hit lots of outright winners because he was standing up at the baseline. Standing up at the baseline has another big advantage, which Fish also made clear. You are that much closer whenever Nadal hit short, which he does quite often because of his spin. There is tremendous advantage to being closer to short balls.
When you get in to a short ball faster, you get to hit bigger angles. On a surface like the US Open, those are winners. Second, if you are hitting an approach shot you usually catch the ball higher and have many more options. There is another important reason to get to a short ball before it falls below the net: you avoid telegraphing your approach. If you are forced to hit an approach shot off a low ball, while you are running forward, you must prepare for your backswing by moving your feet out of the way, so your opponent knows 2 steps earlier, where you are aiming.
Watch a Roddick match. If he approaches from his usual spot, many feet behind the baseline, he catches the ball very low. Watch his opponent. He is already running into position before Roddick strikes the ball. In today's game, giving away your approach is fatal. Watch an early Federer match (HINT: Roger, you are playing deeper now!). When he hits a short ball, he closes fast, reaches it up high, and freezes his opponent by not revealing his approach. Then, half the time, his opponent guesses wrong or moves early and Roger just hits a winner. The rest of the time, because he has caught the ball up high, he drives it with pace, and gets an easy volley back. Off course, all this is contingent upon your willingness to stand at the baseline and be willing to hit many more balls on the rise. It takes guts. It takes confidence. On clay it is more difficult because of the uneven bounces, and frankly it isn't even worth it. At the US Open, on a hard court, against someone like Nadal, that is where the advantage lies.
Contact: Beth McCaskill
Phone: 678-622-3708
Email: BethMcCaskill@TennisPlayersNetwork.com
URL: http://www.TennisPlayersNetwork.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Beth_McCaskill
http://EzineArticles.com/?The-Baseline---Revisited&id=1471128
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