It was thrilling but the quality of tennis from the great Federer dropped in the 2nd and went back up only a bit in the 3rd and 4th. Rafa survived the storm on the 1st set as Roger came out firing, on top of the baseline, attacking Rafa's ad side to open up the deuce. Going into the the 2nd, 3rd and most of the 4th it was as he wanted to change that strategy by 180 degrees. Patrick McEnroe echoed the sentiment of the room here wondering over and over and OVER again why Fed would not keep the strategy he utilized so well in the 1st. We were as confused here and saw an outlook that would not favor Fed.
Rafa fought hard not having his A game bc of Fed's strategy but as the match went by, he was able to push back Roger and start to make him move. I must say, it was one of the best serving performances from Nadal I have seen. His serve was spot on and caught Roger cheating a couple of times. His strategy against Fed on the serve is always the same, take it to the BH. Last night, he did that, but snuck in a couple to the FH on 2nd serves which earned him some easy points. Great adjustment.
As the match went on, the belief that Fed has on beating The Bull disappeared. Any apprehension or disbelief that Rafa had also disappeared and his confidence was in full display. At the end of the match a dejected Fed left the court as Rafa, the gentleman that he is, clapped in recognition. His post match interviews praised Federer and this is why a Federer fan can still love to watch and support Rafa Nadal!
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