Pete Sampras advices Roger Federer to stay tough against Rafael Nadal in French Open – Tennis News
Former world number, Pete Sampras, has spoken about the Swiss Maestro, Roger Federer, and his mental discomfort. He was making a point that Federer is not happy with the results he is getting and probably not able to absorb the
pressure of multiple defeats.
He stated, "It seems Roger gets a little discouraged if what he’s trying isn’t working. It seems like he starts to press a little bit, starts to miss a little bit. Rafa’s one of those players that, his level will stay the same
the whole match, he just plays one speed, one way. If Roger plays really well, I think he beats Rafa; I think if he plays pretty well, I think Rafa beats him. I just think, you can’t take any time off against Rafa."
The main problem with the Swiss at the moment is that he is facing two separate but world class athletes. Reigning world number one, Novak Djokovic, comes as a surprise package in the clay court season beating the likes of Swiss
tennis ace and disturbing his mental dynamics completely. Federer is unable to focus on one man at the moment; most probably he will have to get through Djokovic to face the Spaniard in the finals. It is because he is always the third seed player in the tournament
and therefore drawn in the above half where the Serb exists.
Sampras further added, “I see it pretty much the same as every year. I think Roger’s definitely one of the favourites. Rafa’s the strong favourite and Novak is a favourite.” However, the scenario changes in the clay court and Nadal
takes the position of Djokovic. The Swiss tennis icon has ruled the world for almost a decade. He forgot about losing and won everything one could ever imagine; however, this also sucks the ability of accepting defeats and Federer is going through the phase
where he is unable to discover a plan against the Top-2 ranked players in the world that has cost him more than anything.
Sampras picked the obvious Nadal for the hot favourite player to win the title but accepted the fact that if Federer was able to go through the mental toughness phase and play at his best, he can beat Nadal even on the clay court.
However, the experience of the Spanish number one is good enough to overcome any player. It has been six straight years that he has clinched, so he still remains the favourite.
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