Davis Cup – US vs Switzerland – Neutralizing Your Strengths

February 12, 2012

When hosting a Davis Cup tie versus the United States, European countries will often choose a slow red clay surface on which to play the matches.  Americans are typically poor on clay, looking a bit like fish out of water, because of the lack of training that occurs on that surface and therefore they don’t demonstrate the required patience to win longer points.  On the face of it, it seems like a reasonable plan as most European players are quite proficient on red clay.  Make your opponent uncomfortable by forcing a style of play they don’t like.  But what if your own players are much stronger on a different surface and a different style of play?  Do you play to your opponent’s weakness or do you favor your strength?  What should the plan be then?

That was the dilemma facing the Swiss team ahead of their tie with the US this weekend, and as many of you know by now, they opted for red clay even though their two best players are far better on faster surfaces.  It’s not that Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka are bad on clay.  They’re not and they’re quite comfortable on it.  However, Roger Federer is nearly invincible on a fast indoor court.  One only need look at his record in the year end ATP championships to see that.

After getting swept on the first 2 days by the US, the Swiss tennis federation certainly had to be rueing the decision to lay down a clay court as it clearly backfired.  Mardy Fish and John Isner pulled off fantastic victories in singles on Friday, and Isner was actually helped by the slower surface as it allowed him time to see Federer’s powerful groundstrokes and be able to return them with great force.  On a faster court, Isner probably doesn’t have a lick of hope of catching up with Federer’s laser-like shots.

So the question is, should you always play to your opponent’s weakness even if doing that may neutralize some of your effectiveness, or should you go with your strength and play your game?  There may not be a black and white answer to this question, but we know what the Swiss did and it didn’t work.  They made their own players less effective with the choice of surface, especially Federer.  A clay court clearly exposes the Federer Achille’s heel – the high backhand.  Rafael Nadal has been exposing that flaw in Federer’s game for years.  On a fast hard court, the ball never bounces up that high which allows Roger to hit through his backhand in his comfort zone and be more consistent with it.  It’s almost a certainty that Federer beats Isner on a quick indoor court.

We can apply this same question to our own individual circumstances.  What if your strength plays directly into the strength of your opponent?  What do you do?  Do you continue to hit your best shots to your foe’s favorite shot or do you go after his weakness?  Again, there may not be black and white answers to these questions, but I have faced this situation a few times and went the route that the Swiss did and found that it was the wrong choice for me.  While I was able to remain competitive, I felt like I was leaving my best shots in the locker room.  I gave too much respect to my opponent’s strength and did not give enough credence to my own best shots.  The reality was that my best shot versus his best shot was not the mismatch I thought it was.  It was relatively even, but because of that misperception, I played afraid of it and that hurt my performance.

I have since decided that playing my most effective game (aka, my identity), using all of my strengths, is the best approach in all situations.  If the other guy handles my best tennis and beats me, then he beat my best effort and I’m fine with that.  Why should I intentionally play a less effective style?

How about you?  Have you ever let an opponent take you out of your game with his or her strengths?  How did you react?  I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

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