Rafa Nadal

[flyboy77]

Makes for an interesting discussion.....

Head to Head. Nadal 23 vs Federer 15 yet Roger is the 'GOAT'??
In fact, such is the dominance of Rafa on clay, The Express hasn't bothered to turn up for the last 2 years!!

Another aspect that has shaped their rivalry has been that of racquet equipment. Nadal has always used a large 100 square inch racquet, however, Federer used a significantly smaller 90 inch racquet in their matches from 2004–2013. This was the size Federer had always played with since a youth, but in an age of increasing power tennis this substantially smaller racquet put him at a disadvantage. During the period in which Nadal enjoyed this advantage in racquet equipment he compiled a 22–10 record. In early 2014 Federer began experimenting with a larger frame and played Nadal in just his second tournament using this larger prototype.[80] Nadal won this match and took his advantage to 23–10. However, since Federer committed to his new 97.5 inch Wilson Prostaff he has flipped their rivalry upside down going an undefeated 5–0 in their matches with equally modern racquet equipment.[81] Many analysts have claimed that Federer's switch to a modern sized racquet and his subsequent dominance, in addition to the vast improvements it has made to his single handed backhand, have proven that he was playing with a handicap for most of their rivalry.

Federer shot himself in the foot imo. His ego wouldn't allow himself to admit for many a year that he couldn't toy with all and sundry....indeed, Nadal toyed with him for a decent stretch.

Anyone who has played tennis at a decent level, knows the power difference between a 90sqi and a 100sqi bat....the latter Rafa has used forever and a day....