Rafael Nadal has been struggling with several injuries in the past few months. He is on the verge of losing his place in the top 10 of the ATP rankings.
The former world No. 1 had a great start to 2022. He won the title in Melbourne and then bagged his 2nd Australian Open title. Nadal won his third consecutive tournament of the year when he defeated Cameron Norrie to lift the Mexican Open. Since then, Nadal only won the French Open. He suffered several early exits as the year went on.
Injuries had been pegging him back as well. He played in the United Cup earlier this year but suffered losses against Cameron Norrie and Alex de Minaur. In the Australian Open, the southpaw defeated Jack Draper in the first round before being ousted in the second round by Mackenzie McDonald. During the second-round clash, Nadal suffered a hip injury that has kept him out of action so far.
Nadal was the world No. 2 at the start of the year but now he is at No. 8 and on the verge of dropping out of the top 10 for the first time in 18 years. The incredible record is set to end finally after the veteran withdrew from Indian Wells and Miami due to injury.
Author of ‘Big 3’, Bastien Fachan posted a tweet, giving some interesting facts about the time when Nadal was outside the top 10.
- The iPod Nano didn’t exist.
- YouTube was 2 months old.
- Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova were tied at 2-2 on the head-to-head.
- Lionel Messi was yet to score for Barcelona.
- Candy Shop by 50 Cent was the US No. 1 song.
- Ryan Gosling and Rachael McAdams were a thing.
Tennis legend believes Rafael Nadal is still the favorite to win the French Open
The French Open has been a happy hunting ground for Rafael Nadal. He won a record-extending 14th title at the clay-court major last year.
Tennis legend Boris Becker still believes that Rafael Nadal has what it takes to win the French Open title. The 6-time Grand Slam champion told Eurosport recently that he feels Novak Djokovic is not looking at the golden slam but will try to win a 23rd Grand Slam title for the record. However, Nadal is his favorite to win at the French Open.
“I personally don’t think Novak is thinking about the golden slam,” Becker told Eurosport. “I think he wants to win the 23rd major of his career, which would be the record. The next major is Roland-Garros where, in my eyes, the favorite still is Rafael Nadal. But Novak is on his heels. So let’s see what these two great champions will deliver for us.”
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