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Tactics that work against Fed

1344 Views 26 Replies 21 Participants Last post by  vogus
I have been analyzing Federers matches at the u.s open so far and noticed a few things that may be pertinent . I am studying statistics so of course most of my findings are based on numbers on what works well and what doesn't . From what I observed with his match against Kiefer ,Federer doesn't like it when you slice the ball low as he does so often against his opponents . Why does Federer continue to slice the ball , maybe it's because he knows it's a shot that would be tricky if it were executed against him. It's the same reason why someone decides he wants to be a serve and volleyer , he prefers playing at the net rather than staying back . When you slice the ball very low like a steffi Graf slicer it prevents someone like Fed to rip an easy winner on his next shot . I noticed Agassi used the slice shot effectively throughout his match , especially on his first and second serves . It is also important to note that Agassis first serve in the second set was around 40 % and relied heavily on his second serve slice shot . Federer prefers a fast pace serve so he can chip it back , slice serves to the body are more tricky for him , as he has to do something more with the serve . In Hewitts last few matches with Federer , he has learned to use the slice shot more effectively and often cuts the point short by charging to the net . Another thing I noticed is that when Kiefer playes Federer , he often hits his shots to the centre of the court and deep . When other players play Fed , they go for too much by trying to hit the lines and making him run . If you watched his match against santoro you'll notice how often he would win points by using both forehand and backhand slice shots . So if I were playing Fed , I would do the following :

1) use slice serves to the body but mix it up for obvious reasons

2) slice the ball low and deep to the centre of the court

3) mix up the pace of your shots , like what Fed does to all his opponents .
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blah blah blah, you could have the best tactics in the world to beat fed, but putting them into practise is a totaly different thing.
considering who you are, play the best match of your life and you will win, federer isnt unbeatable.
1sun said:
federer isnt unbeatable.
What's wrong you admitted that blasphemous comment above?
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The few things that make Federer suffer is when he has to hit very high balls with his backhand, and due to this reason Nadal's topspin forehand hurts Federer a lot . In fact Nadal is the guy in the circuit with more chances to beat Federer since when Federer faces Nadal Roger has a lot of problems to play the way he usually does.
some of the players who defeated federer in this last year, have better shots coming from their left side... safin, guga and gasquet´s BH... and nadal´s FH
On a faster court , Nadals top spin shot won't pose as much of a problem for Federer as the balls don't bounce up as high and it can be countered by playing the net and taking the play early from him . Federer knows that the next time he faces Nadal he will have to serve and volley his way like he did in the last 3 sets of the miami finals . On clay however this tactic backfires.
wimbledonfan said:
On a faster court , Nadals top spin shot won't pose as much of a problem for Federer as the balls don't bounce up as high and it can be countered by playing the net and taking the play early from him . Federer knows that the next time he faces Nadal he will have to serve and volley his way like he did in the last 3 sets of the miami finals . On clay however this tactic backfires.
The matter is hard court is also a faster court according to your definition ?? On grass or capert i agree with you, but on a lot of hard courts Nadal's topspin still makes the ball bounce high
I think Nadal could beat Federer on Rebound Ace and I have a feeling Ginepri could go deep in the AO with his agressive topspin baseline game.
I agree with you Grinder , I think Nadal will win the australian open next year .
Among all the hard courts, rebound ace is the best for Nadal . I think next year he will do great things in Melbourne and will be one of the main favorites , but i also think it's too early to say if he will win Aus open cuz we are still in September.
If you notice when Nadal plays Federer , he returns deep to the centre of the court and with plenty of success . It is fair to say that Federer struggles just a bit on his service games against Nadal . Short return balls is a recipe for disaster .
haven't people discussed such things before?? no doubt AO06 will be one of Rafa's top priorities.
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Break his leg and chop his head... make sure you burn his body, eat his heart and throw his ashes to the Black Sea in a full moon night :)
1sun said:
blah blah blah, you could have the best tactics in the world to beat fed, but putting them into practise is a totaly different thing.
considering who you are, play the best match of your life and you will win, federer isnt unbeatable.
:eek: heretic. you should be burned alive :mad: ;)
tactics-----------what tactics??????????????

they dont exist when playing him...........
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I think what can beat Federer is finess. That's using his own game to beat him. That's why Gasquet was able to beat him, and he had a tough game against Santoro. I may be wrong, but I think Federer's main opposition in the future would be Gasquet-assuming Gasquet stays fit, cos I know he'll get better. Nadal would always be his nemesis on clay. I think to beat Federer you have to use your instincts and not think too much. And to be able to do this, you must have a pure God-given talent, which I think Gasquet has got.
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zimzim said:
I think what can beat Federer is finess. That's using his own game to beat him. That's why Gasquet was able to beat him, and he had a tough game against Santoro. I may be wrong, but I think Federer's main opposition in the future would be Gasquet-assuming Gasquet stays fit, cos I know he'll get better. Nadal would always be his nemesis on clay. I think to beat Federer you have to use your instincts and not think too much. And to be able to do this, you must have a pure God-given talent, which I think Gasquet has got.
:worship: :worship:
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:hatoff: I agree with everything you said. Plus Richard is such a risk taker.
Be aggressive and serve well is the only way... look at Kiefer, Nadal and Safin that's what they did.
what shot will make your opponent unable or have it difficult to put a lot of topspin in their strokes?
that is my answer
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