'I think Rafael Nadal needs a couple of matches where...', says expert

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Rafael Nadal has shown us time and time again that he cannot be taken for granted in any tournament where he appears. The Spanish tennis player, 36 years old and current number two in the world, is ready to defend his crown in the first Grand Slam of the season, and although it is clear that he does not arrive with the best feelings, already in 2022 he showed us that this is not It is an impediment to his options to lift the title. "I've trained a lot and I think I'm in very good shape. I just need to show that in competition, I need to win games, but I'm confident that if I can do a good block of training this week I'll have my chances to defend the title. Why not?", he commented days before the Australian Open 2023. "It is true that in recent months I have not been able to compete too much and that the two games lost in Sydney are not the best way to present yourself for a Grand Slam, but Honestly, I'm not at all dissatisfied with the preparation I've had," he added. It should be noted that Nadal already played a couple of games in the United Cup, where he lost to the British Cameron Norrie and the Australian Alex de Minaur. Neither the result nor the action was entirely positive, but with the Mallorcan nothing is known. In the betting houses, players with more options appear above him, such as the Serbian Novak Djokovic and the Russian Daniil Medvedev, and that will serve as motivation for the Spaniard. Do you see real options for Rafael Nadal to win his 23rd Grand Slams title in Australia?

Rafa Nadal is ready

If Rafael Nadal can enter the second week of the 2023 Australian Open still feeling fresh and fit, he can go on to defend his title, believes American tennis great Lindsay Davenport. "I think that he needs a good first week to really give him that kind of extra push and confidence to get through the second week," Davenport said in a recent interview with Tennis Channel. "We all know he can do it, right? We all know that he has the ability. I think he needs a couple of matches where he plays really well early on in Melbourne, doesn't get too fatigued out there, doesn't get injured, gets that confidence up. If he's able to enter the second week with that kind of belief, then look out. Everybody knows that."

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/wrUoBHQ

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