As of 2015, Nadal has reached the top of Wimbledon twice in his career, and only once in the Australian Open; but fans who are really familiar with Nadal should know that Nadal's hard court performance is definitely not weak.
This is Nadal's Achilles' heel.
Looking at the records of the four Grand Slams, Nadal has the fewest wins, the lowest winning rate, and the worst average performance in Wimbledon. The only first-round exit in a Grand Slam in his career also occurred at Wimbledon in 2013, on grass.
The winning rate is also the lowest among the Big Four.
In the final analysis, it is because the bounce of the grass is very low. Not only does it not absorb spin, Nadal's super topspin cannot exert its power here; the rhythm is also fast, relying on serve and attack to establish the game, and the battle often ends in the first three shots, and Nadal
Dahl's game style of circling the baseline and slowly building an advantage is also inconsistent with his game.
In fact, this is just like Nadal and Federer:
One is suitable for red soil, and the other is suitable for grass. Even the blood flowing in the body is completely different.
The two players are so different and distinct, from style to type to talent. It is precisely because of this that the "Fena Jue" can always collide with incredible sparks, just like the ice and fire.
Like a song, it wrote a magnificent chapter in the history of men's tennis.
2006, 2007, and 2008 were the most incredible and exciting years for ATP——
For three consecutive years, Federer and Nadal have met at Roland Garros and Wimbledon.
At Roland Garros, Nadal is the king of clay, defeating Federer for three consecutive years to reach the top spot.
At Wimbledon, Federer was the king of grass, defeating Nadal for two consecutive years in 2006 and 2007 to reach the top, and then came the legendary 2008.
It was that year that Federer and Nadal had their peak showdown at Wimbledon's Center Court. The two players joined forces for a fierce battle of four hours and 48 minutes. Nadal lost two sets first, and Federer stood on the edge of the cliff.
A desperate counterattack, winning two tiebreaks to equalize the score.
In the final set, the two players went back and forth, refusing to give an inch, and were in a stalemate all the way. This great game had to be decided through a long game in the end.
There are no night matches at Wimbledon. When darkness cannot be seen, the referee has the right to decide whether to continue the match or postpone it to the next day.
At that time, the duel continued until the sky was getting dark, and the hitting vision of both players had been significantly affected. Just when everyone was worried that they might not be able to witness the outcome of this peak duel today, however, Nadal broke serve
Already.
"9:7".
In the end, just as Federer ended Nadal's 81-game winning streak on clay, Nadal also ended Federer's epic 65-game winning streak on grass, his 40-game winning streak at Wimbledon, and reached Wimbledon for the first time in his career.
, and won the Grand Slam title for the first time outside the French Open.
"Epic Battle"!
Later, until far later, the 2008 Wimbledon final was still considered by countless experts and countless fans to be the greatest game in history——
Not only because of the game itself, not only because the two players have competed in two Grand Slams on different venues for three consecutive years, but also because of the competition between Federer and Nadal beyond the victory or defeat on the court. Everything was perfect. In the end
Create a classic.
However, in 2008, it was already seven years ago. The world was turned upside down. The rise of Djokovic and Murray was already a thing of the past. The impact of Wawrinka and Gauvin is now in progress. Nadal's
His career has also been plagued by various injuries, and the former trend-chasing boy is now nearly 30 years old.
Slowly, Nadal's shortcomings in grass-court events were exposed as he grew older and suffered more injuries. His performance at Wimbledon in the past three years has been unsatisfactory:
2012, second round; 2013, first round; 2014, fourth round.
In other words, we only won four games in three years.
Looking back to this season, Nadal's state has further bottomed out, and the challenges and impacts of the grass-court season are full of uncertainties.
And, what’s worse is that from the clay court season to the grass court season, there is no time to stop and breathe——
After the end of the hard court season in the spring, there is actually one to two weeks of adjustment time for players to change their rhythm; but there is no time after the end of the clay court season. The day after Roland Garros ended, the grass court season had already started, seamlessly.
Players must make adjustments and transitions themselves.
Just like the "Sunshine Double Crown", you need to continuously improve your condition in a short period of time to meet the dual challenges in terms of mental and physical fitness; it is more difficult than the "Sunshine Double Crown". After all, Indian Wells and Miami are both on hard courts, but you just need to adjust the details.
But red soil and grass are completely different things.
The difficulty can be imagined.
It is precisely because of this that for a long time, consecutively reaching the top of the French Open and Wimbledon was considered a feat and had a special title:
"Channel-Slam".
"Channel" is like switching tracks or switching modes. In this way, it expresses the vast and distinct differences between the two venues; at the same time, it also expresses the continuous connection between the two venues in this way.
Excellent performance in difficulty.
Of course, for top players, changing venues is not a big problem. The real test is basic skills.
Federer and Nadal also had a special exhibition match:
On both sides of the court, one side is clay and the other is grass. The two players still rotate according to normal matches and constantly change venues. This also means that both players must constantly adjust their steps and status to complete the shot.
.
Especially in modern tennis, with the improvement of racket and sneaker technology, players' styles, play, and tactics on different venues change less and less, and the feeling of venue switching is slowly weakening. The switch between clay and grass no longer seems to be the same.
One problem is that many players basically do not change their playing styles and tactics, and they are famous all over the world with just one move.
But for Nadal, who is troubled by injuries and form, this is not good news. Before he has time to digest the tragic loss at Roland Garros, the grass court season has already arrived, and everything is too compact and intensive.
, there is a serious lack of breathing space.
The only good thing is that this is not Nadal's first season——
Year after year, year after year, they are all experiencing the same story, seamlessly transitioning from clay to grass. Professional players have become accustomed to it. They have slowly figured out their own ways and routines to complete the game.
Transition, adapt, and strive to give your best performance.
For those newbies who have just entered the ATP, there is no other way but to experience it in person, to go into battle in person, to complete the accumulation through game after game and season after season. Maybe they will be in a hurry and at a loss at first.
, so that their performance is terrible, but slowly, they will become seasoned, they will also get used to the earth-shaking changes of Channel Slam, and start to learn to enjoy it.
Gao Wen is a little nervous and a little apprehensive, but he is more expectant and excited, gearing up to enter the grassland season and face new challenges.