Rafael Nadal will begin his journey this Sunday at the Australian Open after winning it in 2022 and affirmed that he is there to win his 23rd career Grand Slam and continue as the greatest winner in history.
“What happened last year is just a sample of what sport is. You are capable of winning a series of games and things can happen. Lor that it seems impossible then it stops being so”, added the first seed after warning about the danger of his first rival, the left-handed British Jack Draper.
Nadal, who will have the opportunity to reach his 23rd Grand Slam title, would face the winner of the duel between the Americans Mackenzie McDonald in a hypothetical second round and Brandon Nakashima.
“It is probably one of the most difficult first rounds that could have touched me as the top seed.. He is young, fast and growing exponentially up the ATP rankings. We will see what happens”, added the champion of 22 major competitions.
In the quarterfinals, he could face the Russian Daniil Medvedev in what would be a repeat of the 2022 final in which the Spaniard won the title after coming back from the first two sets that Medvedev won.
The heaviest rivals that you could come across in the semifinals would be the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas (number three in the ranking) and the Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime (number six).
“What Djokovic does I can’t control, the only thing I can do is try to do my best to have a chance. SIf he wins, he will be congratulated for doing something historic,” he commented.
Nadal stressed the importance of having completed training at the highest level with great tennis players during the last three weeks at Melbourne Park and stressed that he has hardly experienced any physical discomfort.
“I am happy with the preparation and I have done days with double sessions. This gives me a confidence that helps me. I am prepared to play well,” she explained.
The Spaniard finished 2022 with 39 wins and 8 losses. He won the Australian Open, Roland Garros, the ATP 250 in Melbourne and the ATP 500 in Acapulco.
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