RAFAEL NADAL ALL FIRED UP ON HARD COURTS IN MIAMI 08

Three photos of Rafael Nadal after winning match with Berdych

Rafael Nadal (2) will play Nikolay Davydenko (4) for the Sony Ericsson Open April 6, Sunday at 12:30 p.m.
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Nadal versus Berdych April 4, 2008 ~ 2nd set
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The Evans Report:

Rafa Rolls Into Final By Richard Evans

Friday, April 04, 2008

Rafael Nadal had never beaten Thomas Berdych on hard courts in three previous attempts. He has now. After a tough first set struggle, the world No. 2 roared into the final of the Sony Ericsson Championships here in Miami with a 7-6(6), 6-2 victory over the powerful Czech on another hot, breezy day.

The win, which demonstrated how well Nadal is adapting his game to hard courts, put him into the final here for the second time. In 2005 he lost to Roger Federer in five sets but that much anticipated clash will not be repeated following Andy Roddicks sensational victory over the Swiss in a dramatic encounter under the lights on Thursday night.

With Federer faltering in alarming fashion at 3-4 in the third set just the moment he usually becomes mentally and physically impenetrable Roddick was able to come up with just the number of whiplash serves he needed to record only his second victory over Federer in 17 attempts. Andy certainly deserved it.

Nadal showed no such signs of weakness against Berdych who remains just a notch below Roddick as a hardcourt performer. Berdych had beaten Nadal in three ATP Masters events in 2005-06 in Cincinnati, Toronto and indoors on hard in Madrid but he quickly realized he was playing a more aggressive performer today.

"Hes trying to attack more now," said Berdych. "If stays behind the baseline on this surface someone like James Blake or myself can beat him. But he has changed. It is very difficult to beat him when he plays like this. And my level went down at the end. It has been a long month in the States."

Now Berdych faces the prospect of going home to Prague and packing his clay court shoes for a Davis Cup tie against Russia in Moscow where Shamil Tarpischevs team have not lost a tie at home since the Pete Sampras-inspired victory for the United States in 1995.

Nadal needed to take a second stab at winning the first set tiebreaker. A couple of errors off raking Czech drives saw him squander three sets points from 6-3 up but, after correctly challenging a baseline call, he moved ahead again and took it 8-6. The Spaniard never released his grip on the match again and eventually reeled off the last twelve points to leave his opponent well beaten.

"I think I played very good tennis," Nadal said afterwards. "The wind was very tough and it was tough at the end of the first set when I had a lot of chances before I win it. But always I was very concentrated."

As far as being a better hardcourt player than he was in 2005, Nadal was skeptical about making direct comparisons. "In 2005 I won Montreal and Madrid so I was not bad, no? But for sure I am a more experienced and better player now."

R. NADAL/T. Berdych

7-6, 6-2

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Rafa serving for match and interview in Espanol

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Here is an interview with:

RAFAEL NADAL

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Pretty incredible second set. You won the last 12 points and no unforced errors. Were you feeling pretty on top of him?

RAFAEL NADAL: Well, I think very good tournament. I think I am playing very well this tournament, so today was great match, too. Because it's very tough player like Berdych. Happy for the win.

First set was tough, especially in the end, because I have a lot of chances and never finish, the set.

But I think in the beginning of the first set it was very important. To be very concentrate with my serve. Because against wind was very tough. And I have some breakpoints against, but I can be very concentrate all the time.

Q. Did you feel like after you doublefaulted to lose the set on the 7th set point that he kind of went away, that you defeated him mentally at that point?

RAFAEL NADAL: I don't think so. I think I had a lot of chances before. First set point with my serve, 53, 1540 and 54, 63 in the tiebreak. A lot of chances.

I did not win any, one, but in that moment I was feeling playing better than Tomas in the moment, because I feel I all the time (in Spanish). I was ahead all the time in the score.

Q. How much better are you as a hardcourt player now than three years ago when you were in the final here?

RAFAEL NADAL: Always we must have the comparison. I think it's impossible compare it. 2005 I won in Montreal, I won in Madrid, I played the final here. The numbers are saying I'm not much better than 2005, so...

I think I have more years, more experience. I'm better player than 2005. I don't have any doubt about this. But it's impossible to compare it. It's totally change feelings.

Q. We had a sensational match last night here. Did you watch it? Federer versus Roddick. If you did, what are your thoughts?

RAFAEL NADAL: I don't watch any point. I didn't watch any point, so I can't say.

Q. Are you surprised that it's Andy and not Roger?

RAFAEL NADAL: Well, when you have one score, head to head like 140, last 14 times, for sure it's surprise, but when you play against Roddick all the match depends on points.

So if you are not playing at your 100% and if he's serving well, he's playing well, he play some points important points well from the baseline, you have very difficult match.

Q. I think I read something on your blog that people shouldn't be too hard on Roger. Based on last night's match, don't say that something is wrong with Roger, that he played well. Can you talk a little bit about that?

RAFAEL NADAL: I think the people are speaking too much about Roger's moment. I think Roger is not in that moment, but, you know, it's very tough be all the time at 100%.

He has for last four or five years unbelievable records. Right now he's not doing bad. He's doing semifinals in Australia and semifinals Indian Wells. Here, quarterfinals.

For sure we are not for us, not normal watch Roger lose in these tournaments, but he's a human person. Anything can happen, because the levels always are very close. Roger has a special ability and always win the important matches and win in the difficult moments.

For that reason, I think it's not fair right now we speak bad about Roger.

Q. You had a tough tournament in Indian Wells and took a pretty tough loss there. I was just wondering how long did it take you to overcome that emotionally or being down about that? In general, how did you deal with a loss? Because you've come back and are playing really, really well.

RAFAEL NADAL: No one hour. I think Indian Wells I play a very good tournament. I arrive there without my best confidence. I lost in Rotterdam against Seppi and Dubai against Roddick without playing. Improving a little bit my level against Roddick in the quarterfinals of Dubai, but far away than the level that I'm playing right now.

So I know won against Tsonga and Blake was a very good win for me for my confidence, and I arrive to semifinals a little bit tired without believing 100% in my chances in that match.

But after my match against Djokovic, I always have a positive thoughts. I play very good tournament, played terrible match today, I thought, in the moment. But why not? I can play very good tournament in Miami because I am playing better. My feeling was I'm coming better every day.

So I arrive here and I practice every day very well. I say the press conference before tournament I was playing very well, and right now I am in the finals. So anything can happen in this final.

Anyway, for me, going to be very important tournament, this one, because play a final in Masters Series event, beating against big players and playing, I know I am playing at one of my best levels.

Q. In the first game of the match, you hit two very powerful backhands, but for the rest of the match we didn't really see that anymore. Can you explain, because you can hit that shot, why you don't do it more often?

Q. In the first game of the match, you hit two very powerful backhands, but for the rest of the match we didn't really see that anymore. Can you explain, because you can hit that shot, why you don't do it more often?

RAFAEL NADAL: I really don't know. I didn't think about this. I think I have more backhands, no? But, you know, sometimes it depends of the points. It's difficult say why I'm not touching the ball. It's about your feeling in that moment, no? I don't know.

Q. Because a lot of times you played the backhand more safe, but you can hit it very powerful, and people talk about how you should play aggressive on hard courts. It's much talked about. That's why, because you can hit the shot, and we'd like to see it more often maybe.

RAFAEL NADAL: I going to do more times in the final. (Laughter.) If you like, I going to do it.

Q. I know you still have a match to go here, but could you look ahead to next week in the Davis Cup against Germany and your thoughts on that?

RAFAEL NADAL: Yeah, it's going to be tough for me. I going to arrive there on Tuesday night, so Wednesday and Thursday, two days only preparation.

So going to be tough. Going to be the decision of the captain put me on Friday or not. I going to try my best for arrive there with my best conditions, but we'll have a very difficult confrontation against Germany, no? Outside, for us it's always difficult for play outside.

We have a complete team. We can play singles and doubles for all four, because I think we have very good level. So we hope have chances for being in the semifinals and play finally at home after long time.

Q. Talk about your match and Andy in Dubai, and what do you have to do if you play him in the finals to beat him? Obviously return of serve is the key.

RAFAEL NADAL: I think continuing playing like this. So if I play the final like I played the matches before, I going to have chances for a win. I don't have chances for lose, too. But I think if I playing like this, I going to have my chances.

Q. But against Andy, is the key returning his serve? That it?

RAFAEL NADAL: It's always the key, returning his serve. You can't prepare the match believing in return his serve, because if he's serving 144 miles, your strategy is not this. My strategy is try to play aggressive all the time and be safe with my serve and well, with my serve and continuing like this.

So after, wait my chance on the return. If you are all the time in the final normally you have chance.

Q. Every player wants to wins tournaments, Grand Slams. Where does achieving the No. 1 ranking fit for you? How much of focus is there on that? What would it mean to you if that were to come?

RAFAEL NADAL: For me, the most important thing is feeling well, feeling playing well, and feeling at the best level. If I am at the best level I have chances for being No. 1, for be No. 2, for be No.3, for No. 4, or No. 5.

But my goal is try to be in the top positions. So I have three years in a row No. 2. This is unbelievable position, because with my points, we have a lot of No. 1s before.

So I think it's I can't say too much about this, no? Just try to continuing playing at the same level like last years, and if I have any chance for be No. 1, I will try to do.

But for me it's not obsession to be No. 1, no? Just I always try my best. I am not finding the No. 1. You are No. 1 or you are not No. 1. That's my feelings.

Q. A lot of the European players tell us that this part of the calendar is very hard for them. They get tired being in the United States for a month or over five weeks. You seem to play well in these tournaments. Are you comfortable here in the United States for that long of time? And if so, why is that?

RAFAEL NADAL: I'm very comfortable in United States, but not for this time. It's not fair have one month, two tournaments, and after go back to Europe and we have to play three Masters Series on clay.

We only have three Masters Series on clay during all the season, and we have three Masters Series in four weeks. So for us it's terrible, that.

And three Masters Series in the middle of the biggest tournament on clay in the world: Barcelona. So if you see the calendar, that is unbelievable.

Everybody can say about the Olympics. Is not for the Olympics. This year we have that. It's because these two tournaments are one week later, because you have university or something like this, college basketball. I respect 100% the college basketball. I think it's very important.

I know here it's very important, the college basketball, because I saw always the American players and the mens in the locker room watching always this.

But, well, we can't have the calendar thinking about the college basketball, no? So we are 100% disappointed about this decision of the ATP.

Finally the European players are, well, I don't know, very angry about these decisions, no? For me it's terrible. You know, I'm a clay player, but I can play very well on all surface. But play four weeks it's impossible if you are playing well, no?

Q. Andy Murray has just announced that had Alex Corretja is going to be his coach through the clay season. Your thoughts on that whether you're surprised, because Alex is a TV guy now, and what you think he can help Andy with.

RAFAEL NADAL: Well, I really don't know because I didn't have I don't know how he's working Alex against one player, no? For sure he has enough experience on clay. He can pass on his feelings how to play on clay to Andy.

But anyway Andy, I think, is very talented player. He can play very well in all surfaces, no? Why not on clay? I think he going to do very good.

Q. Perhaps the one phase of your game that has improved the most is your serve, both first and second serve. Could you assess for us how much improvement you've made over the last two years in your serving?

RAFAEL NADAL: I don't like to speak too much about my improves, because every week we are speaking about my improvement. I don't know, I always try to improve everything. My serve, for sure, is more is more difficult improve my forehand than my serve, because I have my serve here and my forehand here.

When you start playing tennis, you well, I don't know how you're playing, but you have more chances to improve than me, so it's easier. So if my serve is worse I have more chances for improve.

But I always try to improve everything. My serve is important part of my game to improve, and I was very focus all the time with my serve and with my volleys with my slice, because I am slicing much better than two years before now, too. I use my slice on hard surfaces important shot, and two years before I didn't use.

12:30 P.M. SUNDAY, APRIL 6
RAFAEL NADAL
WILL PLAY
NIKOLAY DAVYDENKO
IN THE SONY ERICSSON OPEN
FINAL

YOU ARE ON FIRE RAFA !!

WAY TO SALSA UP MIAMI!!
KEEP THE HEAT TURNED UP

RAFA HAS GOT GREAT HEART

At Zimbio photos of Rafael Nadal against Tomas Berdych April 3, 2008 at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami Day12 ~ See for credits to some of photos posted here