Toni Nadal believes Rafael Nadal’s days of winning Wimbledon are not behind him and that the Spaniard could have gone all the way had it not been for Nick Kyrgios’ devastating serving game.
The world No1 was on the receiving end of 37 aces from Kyrgios, who beat him in four sets in the fourth round on Tuesday.
It was the third year in a row Nadal has suffered an unexpected defeat to an opponent ranked 100 or lower, having lost to Lukas Rosol – ranked 100 at the time – in the second round in 2012, to Steve Darcis – ranked 135 – in the first round in 2013 and this week to world No144 Kyrgios.
But Toni, Nadal’s coach and uncle, believes it is a different story this year and that his nephew can add a third Wimbledon title to his resume in the future.
“Rafael has won this tournament two times and made three more finals. Yes we can win (it again). It’s very difficult and every year it’s more difficult. But I’m sure this year we were prepared to have a very good tournament,” Toni told Sport360.
“If Rafael had beaten Kyrgios, maybe he could have won the tournament because it’s just a couple of balls that made the difference. It wasn’t the same as last year when Rafael couldn’t run and he played really bad. This year he could have beaten everyone. He could lose, but he had chances to beat the best players in the world.
“I think Rafael normally here he plays better in the second week than the first week, but we played against a very good player, a very difficult player who made 37 aces.”
Indeed Kyrgios won just seven more points than Nadal in the fourth round and the 19-year-old Aussie could break serve once throughout the clash.
Still the fact is, Nadal has gone from making five finals in a row at the All England Club to winning just four matches here in three years.
Asked if Nadal remains psychologically confident on grass, Toni said: “Yes. We have had many problems in the last two years, 2013 and 2012 but this year he played well and was very positive and confident to play.
“We know always when we come here that it’s very difficult, not for Rafael, for everyone it’s difficult to play here on grass. All the matches are 7-6, 7-5… it’s not like Roland Garros when you have many possibilities. But we arrived here good.
“I think Rafael has played not a bad game here this year in Wimbledon. But we have had a very bad draw because we played with players – it’s so difficult to play against these kind of players. Players with big serves.”
Kyrgios, who was playing just his second career grand slam main draw, has been the surprise package of the tournament and many were shocked that his level never dipped over the four sets against Nadal, a 14-time major champion.
But Toni says he wasn’t surprised by the Aussie teenager’s level.
“No because Kyrgios is a good player and this kind of surface is wonderful for him. When you are young you can remember when Boris Becker won here, Boris Becker was 17 and he had a very good serve and he could serve, serve, serve, then he learnt a lot and became one of the best players. But at 17 he could beat everyone because of his serve,” explained Toni.
“So am I surprised by Kyrgios? No! He has the aggressiveness and he was playing without doubts, with nothing to lose.”
Looking ahead, Toni believes Nadal has regained his confidence and will be ready to defend his titles in Canada, Cincinnati and the US Open.
“Rafael began the year very good in Doha and Australia and then he played not too good and I think he has recovered his confidence and his level is again at a good level. and I think Rafael now has the possibility to make a good US tour and a strong finish to the season.”
