RODDICK REFLECTS on RAFA NADAL 

The toughest surface to play on, the most wins: Nadal is such a terrific legend and forever my favorite tennis player.

Andy is such a good communicator. His analysis of playing against Rafa was fascinating.

Rafa's 14 RG titles is the one tennis record I can confidently say will never be broken

As a neutral tennis fan, I also think Rafa was the most important piece of the big 3 era. Novak won the most while Roger was the most popular, but Rafa was the one who went toe to toe with Roger in the 2000s and with Novak in the 2010s - creating a golden period in mens tennis history. If you remove him completely from the picture, we would be left with 2 separate periods of dominance - 1 from Roger and 1 from Novak, which wouldn’t have been as entertaining to watch. Rafa connected those 2 periods and gave us an extended golden era in men’s tennis.

When I first saw Nadal play- I thought there's no way this guy will be able to play with this much intensity and stick around long enough to make an impact on the game. He's going to get injured and he'll be a flash in the pan. Here we are 23 years later. An impossibly talented and uniquely durable / fast healing machine.

When I see Andy former Nr. 1, showing such an admiration and gratitude, it is really an example to look up to far beyond the tennis court. Thank You Andy.

"I was right, he didn't get 8, he got 14" 😄

Andy's comments about what it was like to play Rafa... were outstanding. How he could put the opponent in a bad spot with the super spin of his powerful forehand shot again and again and again was a weapon no one else ever had before he showed up. He was also the fastest player who could cover the court and get to balls that nobody could believe he was getting to - and then he could come up with an amazing passing shot (or lob) after running down a ball that hardly anyone else would get to. His defense was spectacular. His serve got so much better as time went by. His volleying was top notch - and I think he might have missed two overheads in his entire career. I think I would rate Nadal's forehand as the best the game has ever seen. He could use it to pin opponents into that backhand corner - pretty much whenever he wanted... and he could flatten it out and hit rocket winners. And he could hit the running forehand for winners - probably better than anyone ever has. Andy - Thanks for your in depth comments on Rafa's game. It is great to hear from someone who actually knows what it was like to have to face the balls that were coming off his racket.

I am absolutely grateful for living during the Rafa years

this is what real insight looks like. the value of ex pros is exactly this - highlighting what it's actually like to play these players.

Great tribute to the greatest warrior who ever graced a tennis court and all of our lives.

I will never be able to repay Rafa for the amount of memories he has given me and my Father. I am the same age as Rafa and started following his career at 18 years old. Since then I have watched hundreds of his matches with my father over the years and they are memories I will cherish forever.

I am a Roger fan but Rafa is beyond a legend in this sport. What privilege has been to see all of them play during those past 2 decades and this one is their last one.

I really don’t think anyone, including his 2 greatest rivals, could have had the physical issues he’s had and still reached 22 slams and 37 M1000s. It is completely ridiculous, mind blowing stuff. Missing slams like Wimbledon 2009, US Open 2012, etc, getting injured in the AO 2014 final etc and still getting those numbers… mad. Plus he has wins over prime Federer in a grass slam final and prime Djokovic in a hard court slam final. What a career.

As a Rafa Nadal Parera worshiper, I appreciate your comments Andy. Rafa has left his mark, he doesn't need to hit another shot. Love Rafael Nadal Parera. For me...The G.O.A.T. of all sportsman. Thank you to the Parera family for raising such an outstanding person. Bravo !

Wow, Roddick's analysis and respect for Rafa is off the charts... I mean courts. Kudos!

Nadal is the best defensive player who could, immediately, go offense with just a flick of his wrist. He is a tiger on court. And to just get this said and done; No one - NO ONE - will ever break his French Open record of 14 titles. NO ONE. NOT EVER.

I'm from Spain and I didn't know Andy was such a good communicator. He explains very well and with lot of respect how Rafa's game was.

gotta love Roddick - so sincere, so honest, and so passionate

Thank you Andy. Never heard anyone so beautifully speak about Rafa. I respected you as a great player, now I love you as a commentator. Thank you for your work! Now I am getting on the court.

I find it truly inspiring to see Andy, the former number one, act with such respect and admiration-far beyond the tennis court. Many thanks, Andy.

I agree with Andy, the big 3 era was a massive gift to tennis fans. Unfortunately its end feels like an hangover after a great party.

I’m so grateful to have watched Rafa's epic journey and he’s still in it. 💙

Andy is just the best tennis guru breaking it down

I'm with Roddick: I do feel grateful for watching Rafa for so so many years. Having him, Roger AND Nole? The stuff dreams were made of. Love & respect to them all, forever ❤

I really appreciate Andy bringing us down to reality and the true nature of high level professional tennis. Its so laughable when spectators make stupid comments.

Great insights. Would love to hear a series of “what’s it like to play so and so” and talk about your experiences playing players across the decades.

What an analysis, Thank you, Andy.

love the respect from Andy He cracks me up the way he talks like he's double parked or running late for a bus lol

Love that Andy, who I admire greatly, is so appreciative of the great man Rafa who is also a very intelligent human being.

Love Roddick, I’m English and I love this guy. Could listen to him talk tennis all day long. Ledge

Amazing talk on Rafa! I worked at the US Open at the P1-5 practice courts, and I had the privilege of seeing Rafa practice every day of the tournament, and the thing that surprised me the most was his serve. It's not as fast as the others, but standing at the back fence with it coming at you, you see that it's spinning and curling and moving all over the place, plus it's HEAVY and LEFTY. I'm glad Andy took the time to describe returning Rafa's serve, because his groundies and passing shots usually get all the attention haha

Thanks Andy, appreciated your take on Rafa. on playing him, and the gratitude. He always gave his all on every point and hit so many amazing shots. I think one of his best matches ever was the AO semis 2009 against Fernando Verdasco. It was a 5 setter sideline to sideline and probably Verdasco's best match, even though he lost to Rafa. Then he played a 5 setter against Roger in the final as well and won that one, but the semi was actually better points played by both players.

Andy R is da man as a podcaster! Always insightful, always interesting.

Roddick very intelligent, great communication skills.

Andy you're amazing. Please do more commentary and you need a big TV network contract to do broadcast tennis analysis. You nailed it and tell it like it is.

We should all be grateful for all the years that Rafa gave us on the court. Always a Legend!!

I was a big Sampras fan then when Andy came long became a big fan of him. Then I became a Federer fan. Now I’m rooting for Rafa. Rafa record on clay is truly amazing. Clay is the only surface that hasn’t been changed in how it plays. Grass in Wimbledon was slowed down because of the 2001 Wimbledon finals and the hard courts are slowed down too. We are seeing longer matches longer rallies and now it’s common to see 4hr matches. Where Rafa surface remains the same and you can compare him to borgs gen where Sampras on grass you can’t compare with today’s because the surfaces are different

My view on the big 3 is Roger: Best talent, Rafa: Best heart/effort, Novak: Best mental strength

One of the greatest achievements in any professional sport. Still remember his first win in 2005 like it was yesterday. Never got taken to 5 sets in any of those finals either.

I am very grateful for all the great tennis that I have been blessed to witness from Rafa. I will miss watching him problem solve when he is not ahead in a game, but he works and works to figure out what will bring him success. Hoping we see him again. He deserves to go out on his terms.

A great tribute from a former tennis champion to this fantastic player.

Andy speaks truth of Tennis.

Whether you like Andy or not one thing is for sure, he is by far the best tennis mind and delivery of thoughts that comments about the game of tennis.

Great to see you in this program, role, Andy

Roddick you made too many amazing points here, based on reality of facing Nadal, the gift we should all be grateful that he is still around to give us one more show of amazing tennis and sportsmanship on court and how your precise explanation of his killer forehand!

Always the best post match interviews; now the most accurate and entertaining commentator in the tennis world. Andy humbly undersells how much he changed the game with his understanding of serve toss and gather; even Rafa moved towards that when making the necessary improvement in his serves.

Rafael may play in Barcelona because it's the closest mainland tournament to Mallorca. It will depend on whether he wants to play at altitude in Madrid or not. Also, the Centre Court at Barcelona is named after him, so he might want to play one last tournament there, just to acknowledge their recognition of him. Which tournaments he competes in and how many he plays at this stage, depend entirely on how he is coping with his injuries, of course.

I wish someone had said this about you and your game, Andy. Watching back at the Wimbledon finals vs Federer, the matches were simply astonishing. On that court, on those days, there wasn't too much that separated you.

Andy, you are right on! Great insights and commentary. Love how you described the way it feels when the ball he hits strikes your racket. Brilliant.

Someone should be reflecting on your (Andy Roddick's) three Wimbledon final runs. You were so fucking good at everything it's insane that we don't study you regularly.

Andy's comments about the impossible decision making any player facing an in-form Rafa has to go through were fascinating; Andy was a top tennis player and his perspective as someone who competed with Rafa for the biggest trophies in tennis many times is something no run of the mill tennis analyst can give. He showed how Rafa is basically unplayable when he's firing on all cylinders.

Andy’s thoughts and commentary are amazing

Thanks Andy for the nice tribute.

geat job andy! didsnt knew you were in this! suscribed and liked!

Wow! What a great commentary from Andy. I choose gratitude too. I want to see more too but if I don’t get to, I’ll be grateful for the rest of my life for the excitement, joy, pleasure and genuine motivation to never give up and to be willing to fight through pain that he showed me by doing it himself. I’ve gone back to watch specific matches several times over when I needed to believe I could keep pressing on when I’m in a difficult place. What a gift he has been to all who love tennis.

GREAT WORDS ANDY..THANKYOU. YES, WE NEED TO BE GRATEFUL FOR THE YEARS OF PLAY BY RAFA ESP ON CLAY..THE KING. WE LL MISS RAFA AS WE VE MISSED ROGER....

He is right. I remember very well in 2006, people saying that he will play 5 more years and retire.

you are a class act. nadal...GOAT.

Thanks for this Andy. Great content!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What a fantastic perspective from Andy. Thank you.

Roddick, you are so very much right. You are a humble heart; a person with values. I love listening to you. You always talk with knowledge of the cause. You are amazing; we love you.

Great analysis, served with articulate personal experience. Fabulous. I'm in!

I remember those conversations, his body is gonna fall apart, he won’t ever be as successful on faster services etc. We were so wrong, and I am glad we were. He’s been a huge inspiration, no matter the sport you play. On a side note, I recall similar conversations about Andy’s serve when he first burst onto the scene. All the of the American commentators swore he was gonna blow his shoulder out because it was so explosive and “unorthodox”, love that you proved them wrong and also inspired others to tinker with more abbreviated motions. I’m guessing he probably can still crank 135 plus !

Love your comments, Andy!

Thanks to Andy Roddick for an interesting, honest and respectful analysis of Rafa's unique game. Andy is right in saying we should have gratitute for what Rafa has given the sport. I think he should just play Barcelona and Rome in the lead up to RG. Whatever he decides, I hope Rafa gets the joy on the clay he truly deserves if this really is his last season.

Beautifully expressed.

Argute commentary Andy. Thank you for the fascinating insight into actually playing against Rafa and his inimitable arsenal.

Really appreciate how good you are at this Andy. Thanks for not talking down to us. Keep going 🙂

Recently I noticed something. Rafa had nearly the same experience as Roger had in 2010s, when he failed to win GSs (Other than RG of course). He got spectacular 2010 and then till 2017 he only won 1 GS (Once again, not counting RG of course. Actually they should name the cup after him since the Four Musketeers won only a total of 8 singles titles). Then in 2017 at the same time Roger made his comeback, Rafa did his own version too. He was one of the greatest and without dispute the greatest ever among who hit a ball on clay.

Well said, Andy! Huge respect for you.

Such a great insight. 👏👏👏👏

What about that forehand down the line that you swear is going out but the spin…. I call it the whip shot cuz he looks Zorro with the racquet circling over his head as a flourish at the end as that spin draws the ball back in for the point. 😮

Andy Roddick much respect for your comments for rafa.Àn absolute legend no one else in my view compares to rafas humble fighting spirit

Thanks for those kind words about Rafa and this great recognition he truly deserves ❤

I had exactly the same analysis when Rafa came on the tour. "This kid is not gonna last". I mean, we saw so many players playing physically like him, maybe winning 1 or 2 big tournaments, but then after 4-5 years getting injuries on injuries. What Rafa did with that kind of game is out of this world. And I can understand people at one point starting to wonder about doping. Although, when you start to look at Rafa psychology, it feels that everything is more basic for him than any players on the tour; Train. Put the ball back on the court. Train. Eat. Sleep. Train, put the ball back on the court etc etc etc.... Someone like you Roddick seems to have a more complex psychology where events of life, everyday feelings, purpose of life etc etc etc.... have a bigger presence and impact in your day to day life. And that can be burden sometimes I imagine when on the court or when training.

Thanks Andy! Gratitude indeed to all you guys that inspire the world while pushing your bodies, minds, and life to the limits. Thank you and let's go!

Very well said Andy about Rafa. He was underestimated but proved the doubters wrong!

Well said, Andy. Really well done. John is always great to have on the show too. Great insights as always.

Andy, favourite player growing up, great insight

Andy, you are GS Champion, who reveals something uncut about Rafa. Thanks for sharing. Rafa still continues to doing something extraordinary in AO22 and FO22 when he was 36

Love this. Also want to add Rafa's most underrated shot: his volley. This guy can volley, which gives him an extra edge over so many clay court specialists. Genius.

Andy I truly hope Rafa hears this ❤

rafa is a hero.....loves the game so much.

Always, always choose gratitude.

Well said Andy, you're a great man & always so respectful and honest about all the great players 🙂 I loved your battles with our Aussie Lleyton & the respect u had for him too. 👍

14 FRENCH SLAMS IS THE GREATEST SPORTING ACHIEVEMENT EVER ❤ NEXT BEST ISN'T EVEN HALF, THE GREAT BORG ON 6.

TBH I'm not Rafa's biggest fan but man!, you have to respect what he has done for the sport and for the way he plays it. With his style, I never saw him past 30yrs old and yet, here he is - 37 and still doing it, albeit as and when he can. I'd love to see him go deep at RG, just to ruffle the feathers upon the tour. Props for Andy too. Really; I could listen to this guy talk tennis all day long and twice on Sundays. A great communicator puts you right onto the court with them and that is how you feel listening to him speak. Subscribed...

Kudos to Andy - he’s a stellar analyst and makes it easy to follow his tennis logic. I too choose to be grateful for everything Rafa has given to tennis! ❤

Uncle Toni, making Rafa a leftie, was a genius.

@ServedPodcast Rafa changed his style over the years. When he played Agassi, he relied on his speed and moonballed more often (like Seles used to do). Then, pre 2010, he got more aggressive and forced his opponents (e.g., Andy) to run left and right. Once Djokovic started hitting harder and won a lot, Rafa did the same. When Roger got older and stopped running around his backhand so much (circa 2017), Rafa also did the same, beefing up his backhand. Rafa no longer made his opponents run side to side, nor did he rush well outside the doubles alley to hit a forehand. As different as Roger and Rafa is, Roger seemed very influential in Rafa's style except Rafa took fewer chances. Roger felt if he could get ahead in the point, the intimidation was good enough and it would prolong his career. But Rafa was so good defensively that Roger had a hard time hitting through Rafa. You see this lately with trying to hit through Alcaraz. The guy has so many shots. The drop is killer and he can hit winners from everywhere. If you can't get ahead in a point, he will. Alcaraz would have been a nightmare (right now) if he played prime Rafa. No one hits like Alcaraz now, except maybe Sinner on a good day. You need Alcaraz to play subpar. We just don't have players that hit a Karlovic serve that can hit groundies like Sinner, i.e., the Sampras formula. The best groundstrokers often have that because their serve isn't money. It isn't surprising that big servers like Raonic or Shelton often lack speed and hard groundies. Andy Murray, for his height, should have had a huge serve, and if he had, he'd not be 3-time Slam winner, he'd be a dozen times Slam winner. His serve was something of a liability his whole career (and that he played defensively without Rafa's huge shots, and could never reliably hit a down the line backhand, a deficiency he never seemed to overcome).

How Lucky we all have been to have watched these greatest men tennis players ever Federer / Nadal / Djokovic the greatest journey in mens tennis 🎾 just knowing this could be RAFAEL NADAL last year makes me appreciate them even more ❤

amazing technical comment!

You know I am loving Andy's commentary. Subscribed.

Amazing commentary from Andy!

I almost feel the pain when hearing Andy talk about that spin. What a massive force you must feel when dealing with Rafa's shots.

You are the BY FAR best voice in tennis right now. Such a great privilege to have you in the media landscape.

Bravo Andy❤

Nice to hear his analysis on Rafa. Must be so frustrating to play him. I would always try to knife his forehand down the line to his backhand... but Roger tried it many times and didn't help.

Andy, good to have you here as ex- ATP prof Tennis player and commenting good based Tennis // keep doing it !