Australian Open: Rafael Nadal - step by step
Rafael Nadal cleared his tricky opening hurdle at the Australian Open. Can the Spaniard once again play in form at the right time?
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit:
Jan 17, 2023, 03:04 pm
You can't win a Grand Slam tournament in the first round. This sentence - as overdone as it may be - is still correct in 2023. And so Rafael Nadal will not care that he still had a lot of room for improvement in his opening win over Jack Draper.
The most important thing, according to Nadal after the four-set success, was simply the result this Monday. And that was true from the point of view of the defending champion. The fact that he eliminated one of the most dangerous unseeded players in the tournament, Draper, will undoubtedly give the Mallorquin an additional boost of motivation.
Nadal: "A first round nobody wanted"
"I had a very tough first opponent," Nadal said in the post-match press conference. "It was a first round that nobody wanted." The spectators in the Rod Laver Arena were shown why, especially in the first two sets. Draper served extremely strong, also stood up to Nadal from the baseline and also knew how to convince on the net. Only as the game continued did the 22-time Grand Slam winner gain the upper hand - also because his opponent, who was around 15 years his junior, could no longer physically resist.
"I'm much slimmer than in previous years. I've been working hard on a physical level over the past few weeks so that the results can finally appear," said Nadal, who was more than satisfied with his physical condition. The hard work had become necessary after his two defeats in the United Cup, as he had presented himself much more error-prone than usual in Sydney.
Mode suits Nadal
Nadal was still far from perfect in the first round of the Australian Open. But the best-of-five mode and opponents from lower regions of the world rankings allow the Spaniard to afford one or the other lapse at major events. Because only rarely in his successful career did the former world number one show his best tennis right from the start at Grand Slam tournaments.
With all due respect, this will probably not be necessary in the second round against Mackenzie McDonald. And so Nadal can approach his top level step by step. He knows that too: "I train well and just have to extend my good phases."
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