Player Profile #2 Rafael Nadal

The champion of French Open 2008!

Birthdate: 1986
Birthplace: Manacor, Mallorca
Height: 6'1'' (185 cm)
Plays: Left-handed, two handed backhand
Turned Pro: 2001
Coach: Toni Nadal
Racquet: Babolat AeroPro Drive Cortex

Career Review
Singles Record: 297 - 73
Singles Titles: 27
Doubles Record: 65 - 42
Doubles Titles: 4

Grand Slam results
Australian Open SF (2008)
French Open W (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008)
Wimbledon F (2006, 2007)
US Open QF (2006)

Playing Style

Nadal's playing style is best tailored for clay courts. Playing with a strong two-handed backhand, well-angled heavily topspun strokes, fast mobility on the court, excellent defense, good feel and touch at net, and a preference to play from the deep court, he has developed into one of the, if not the best clay court players in the history of the game. He uses a full western grip forehand, which allows him to hit heavy, powerful topspin forehands 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. His heavy topspin makes the ball kick up high in the air, which makes it extremely difficult to return. He is naturally right-handed, but he plays left-handed, and uses his dominant hand as an anchor for his two-handed backhand which he can flatten out or hit topspin like his forehand. Known for his excellent defense, Nadal hits on the run well and creates many winners from seemingly defensive positions. Rafael Nadal is extremely athletic, and tends to go after every shot, even apparent winners from his opponents.

While Nadal's serve is not considered one of his strengths because of the lack of pace and variety compared to other players, it has become more of a weapon over the years. Employing usually a hard lefty slice towards most of his opponents' backhands (right-handed opponents), his serve can be relied upon for consistency and also for some short-point wins such as aces and bad service-returns.[24] With excellent accuracy, power, and consistency, his topspin groundstrokes are his main assets.

Another one of Nadal's strengths is the mental aspect of his tennis game. His ability to come back from behind in a match greatly assists him. He also has good footwork, which helps him to prepare for tennis strokes and get around the court efficiently. In addition, he can put away short balls and comes to net quite often. Rafael Nadal has an under-emphasized net game. He is able to volley deep, but his main strength at net is his touch and feel. Nadal is good at angling volleys away from his opponents and can hit drop volleys well.

Overall, Nadal is an aggressive counterpuncher, forcing his opponents to make errors with his powerful topspin groundstrokes, his speed and overall athleticism, his mental fortitude, and his ability to put away short balls. " (Wikipedia)