The Rafael Nadal Pyramid — Nadal’s journey to becoming a threat to Novak Djokovic once more

• Rafael Nadal faces top seed Novak Djokovic in the ATP World Tour Finals semi-finals at 2pm
• Nadal has struggled this season with confidence issues after physical woes last year
• We track his journey back to form with the Rafael Nadal Pyramid

After enduring nervous struggles for much of the season, Rafael Nadal is now in contention to beat the current world no. 1 at the ATP World Tour Finals. We look at the pyramid of development that has seen Nadal emerge as a legitimate threat to Novak Djokovic once more.

Barclays ATP World Tour Finals tennis is live from London’s O2 Arena until 22 November. Watch & bet on tennis live from London at 365

THE RAFAEL NADAL PYRAMID OF 2015

BEFORE BUILDING — THE INITIAL PROBLEM

Suffering appendicitis and other physical woes, Nadal’s second half of 2014 was a prematurely-ended mess. When he returned in 2015, he was rusty, and consequently both his game and results took a while in coming. And whilst they took a while in coming, Nadal’s confidence faltered. Lacking belief in his ability, his trademark mental strength went self-confessedly out of the window. Thus, the struggles truly began.

THE BASE — CONFIDENCE OFF THE COURT

As the weeks, and then months, rolled by — the French Open slipping from his grasp, and Nadal failing to produce consistency against players of any calibre — the world was quick to voice their doubts. And of course this would have been detrimental to Rafa — if not directly impacting his mental state, giving him more issues to worry about.

Yet when his strong mind forsook him, his passion for the game and desire to win did not. Therefore the Spaniard was able to daily, continuously practise with motivation. And that motivation turned into a renewed belief in his ability — on the courts of preparation.

LEVEL ONE — CONFIDENCE ON THE COURT

Between this first building block and the base is a small, unidentified part of the Nadal pyramid known as the CEMENT. No player (unless you are Stan Wawrinka, streaky and likely to backtrack) can simply jump straight from one major stage to another.

Rafael Nadal re-emerged as a threat during the Asian swing, where he thrashed Stan Wawrinka and reached the China and Basel finals, not to mention another Masters semi-final in Shanghai and a quarter-final in Paris. However, the standard of his game was building up before that. Flashes of the old Nadal were seen at, and prior to, Wimbledon — where an inspired game hid behind the name and ranking of Dustin Brown. And in the build up and course of the US Open, similar occurred — with early losses coming to such talents as Feliciano Lopez and 2015 nemesis Fabio Fognini.

These spurts of form — and his belief in it — set him up for more regular displays of consistency, powered by a growing confidence that persuaded him to go for more, commit to more, and endure more.

LEVEL TWO — SUSTAINED CONFIDENCE (In the big moments, to the end of the match)

In turn, this former step set him up for the next one: Three straight, unexpected victories in London.

Aware of his returning form — even through losses to Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and an inspired Jo-Wilfried Tsonga — Nadal’s positivity and energy flourished. His thrashing of Wawrinka in Shanghai could have played a pivotal part in bridging the gap. One of the most elite of the sport, the Swiss is also terribly erratic, but the victory was Nadal’s first over a top four player this year and likely broke through another mental barrier.

True, Stan Wawrinka and no. 2 seed Andy Murray did not bring their best against Nadal in London, but the way in which Nadal played was tremendous — and proved why his past head-to-heads against both players are so dominant. Almost back to his old ways, he struck deep, stayed zoned, ignored the loss of big games and steam-rolled to the finishing line in both matches, dropping a mere ten games and showing powers of consistency that have gone above and beyond expectation.

Nadal vs Djokovic — the greatest rivalry in men’s tennis?

Yet his three set win over David Ferrer, the no. 7 seed, may have said more for his present game than any other victory.

The higher ranked Spaniard was already guaranteed to top the group, with Ferrer already eliminated, making this match effectively dead. Yet Ferrer, knowing it was his last match of the season, played with all the fire of a player just starting out, competing at a truly elite level and saving set point to claim the first set on a tiebreak. Nadal had possessed a double break lead and served for the set.

With a semi-final with Novak Djokovic less than 24 hours away, and facing the fact that a win would require him to go the distance, Nadal could have called it a day or conserved energy. Being the fighter that he is, we know that there is simply no way he would have done that. But maybe — with the suddenly massive deficit before him, and facing a player who had nothing to lose — it would have been hard for Nadal to summon the quality, energy and mentality needed to succeed just a few months ago.

Not on Friday, however. Bringing his best to the closing stages, and something near it elsewhere, Rafael Nadal fought for almost three hours to claim a win most necessary for the sustenance of his confidence, and the satisfaction of his expectations. Coming from behind with every service game in set three, after losing a mammoth 14 minute Ferrer service game to open it, the Spaniard kept his cool and overcame his few mistakes to secure the break when he most needed it: the Champion’s break for 5–4, setting him up to serve out the match.

That latest win showcased a strong Rafael Nadal in every zone — from mental, to physical, to emotional. And however much energy and time he spent on court, the boost of having topped his group with a perfect record will stand him in good stead as he faces Novak Djokovic.

EXTRA DETAILS — SPECIFIC PARTS OF NADAL’S GAME CHANGED THROUGH CONDFIDENCE:

For Rafael Nadal’s topspin-heavy, highly-spun game, precision and depth is absolutely vital — especially on indoor hard-courts, a surface favouring the most slick and flat of groundstrokes. This week, the Spaniard has been striking to almost baseline point on many of his shots off both wings, and his trademark off-forehands have been kissing the sidelines and finding the corners. These may have not all been outright winners, but their overpowering effect has always set him up to finish the point at the net — another place in which he is lethal via both volleys and overheads.

“I come to the net when I am confident,” the Spaniard shared after his match with Murray. And it is certainly obvious.

When people have come to criticise Nadal’s game in the past, the backhand always takes the brunt of it. Often having been the weaker element of his game, lacking depth and damaging effects, that was not entirely unfair. The 29-year-old himself seemed aware of it, running around the shot to strike his favoured forehand.

Yet, especially here in London, the Majorcan has been reinventing this shot. His backhand slice immediately puts him on level terms when he uses it as a return bang on the baseline, and forces the opponent to bend low when conducted in a rally.

But perhaps the most impressive thing about the shot in London is the sheer strength and depth of the shot. From his spinning forehand, it means Nadal can transfer to a flatter, starkly dissimilar shot that has gathered him many a winner at the O2 Arena when used down the line. And his general willingness to simply rally for long lengths of time off that lesser-dominant side displays a confidence in the shot that reflects in his slowness to crack off it.

• Slowness to panic, and belief to come back

After losing two lengthy, massive games to kick of his final sets versus Stan Wawrinka and David Ferrer, Nadal regrouped and took them both. And as his first set stretched longer and longer against home favourite Andy Murray, the Spaniard stayed calm and stepped up when he needed to, taking the 6–4 set that the Briton often swipes himself.

If Rafael Nadal has not fully resurrected yet, he is very close to doing so.