After less than four months back on Tour following a seven-month injury layoff, Rafael Nadal is back to No1 in the ATP Race and No4 in the world rankings thanks to making eight finals in all eight events he competed in, winning six titles en route.
Here’s a closer look at Nadal’s comeback:
* The Mallorcan will head to Paris as the No4 seed which means all the drama about a possible quarter-final between him and Roger Federer, Andy Murray or Novak Djokovic was unnecessary.
* Nadal has lost twice in 38 matches this year, once to Horacio Zeballos in his first tournament back, and once to Djokovic in Monte Carlo.
* The 25-year-old has had nine top-10 wins since he came back, including two over Federer, but is yet to beat Djokovic or Murray since his return.
* Nadal has saved 68 per cent of the break points he faced so far this season. That’s a higher percentage than any of the other top-five players.
Ultimately, Nadal is the Roland Garros favourite but even after his straight sets drubbing of Federer in the Rome final, he is still not at his very best… showing some vulnerabilities along the way.
If Djokovic gets his act together, he has a real shot at challenging the Spaniard for the Coupe des Mousquetaires.
Thumbs up – Tomas Berdych
The Czech snapped a horrendous 11-match losing streak to Novak Djokovic, a player Berdych told me he considers his “worst nightmare”, by coming back from a set down to beat the world No1 in three and make the semis. To put this win into perspective, Djokovic is 24-2 this season after winning the first set and only Berdych and del Potro have managed to rally against him in 2013.
Thumbs down – Rafa-Federer rivalry
This rivalry, one of the most famous in sport, has gone from giving us epic marathons like the Wimbledon 2008 final, to leaving us with a 69-minute one-sided affair in Rome on Sunday. The Rome final between the pair back in 2006 was so nail-biting, I remember I was on a trip with my friends at the Red Sea, where I left the sun and breathtaking beach for five hours to watch Nadal and Federer push each other to their limits until the Spaniard took the fifth-set tiebreak.
Seven years and 24 showdowns later, it’s getting harder and harder to get excited over a match between those two. Will meeting number 31 bring anything new to the table? I doubt.
Hilarious moment
Jerzy Janowicz’ “how many times” meltdown may have been remixed into a Eurovision song last week, but Viktor Troicki’s outburst during his match with Ernests Gulbis in Rome still topped the charts for me.
The Serb was arguing with the umpire that “even from space you can see there is no space” between the ball and the baseline in a disputed call and went on to grab the TV cameraman towards the mark to show the millions watching on TV that he was right. I’ve definitely never seen anything like this before.
READ MORE:
– Ruthelss Rafa conquers Federer and Rome
– Federer upbeat for Roland Garros despite Rome drubbing
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