On tiptoe, with robbers’ ladders, or simply narrowing their eyes through a slit: dozens of observers tried to catch at least a little of what Rafael Nadal was doing on the largely isolated training grounds on the Jean Bouin-Training center so fabricated. Simple: the peewits saw a lot because of the privacy screen not far from the system French Open Not.
That was already the case on Monday before the quarterfinals when Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev worked side by side on subtleties and it didn’t change on Thursday either. There were only the Mallorcan and the German flagship of tennis after her statements-Wins against Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz left. Nadal, which has been his handle for years, avoids his opponents before a duel if possible. That’s on the fairly manageable Jean Bouin– Training ground but not that easy. So Nadal started the training session before his 15th semi-final at the French Open an hour before Zverev and only in the presence of a few Spanish reporters who were allowed to follow Nadal’s usual high intensity.
Zverev could at least hear the almost half hour that overlapped between the two opponents from afar. Loud moans and long rallies from a soon to be 36-year-old – even at the end of an almost 90-minute session after almost two weeks of escalation Grand Slam-Tennis. If the German wants to have a chance against the record winner in Paris (13 titles) on Friday (June 3rd), he must not be fooled by the narrative that Nadal is handicapped and not at full capacity.
Nadal and the Müller-Weiss syndrome
On May 12th, Nadal had a pained expression on his face Center Court dragged from Rome. He lost to the Canadian Denis Shapovalov. Nadal already stated in 2007 that he suffers from the so-called Müller-Weiss syndrome, in which the bone tissue of the scaphoid bone in the foot skeleton dies. His uncle and former coach Toni Nadal explained at a press round in Munich in 2018 that he initially fought the problem with insoles. The Spanish newspaper “mark” now reports that the insoles led to a different strain and knee problems. The constant ignoring of the body’s signals over the years is now leading to consequences. But there is nothing to see and feel about the highlights of the year.
In 2021, the Spaniard had to end his season in August and presented himself to his fans on crutches in September. At the beginning of February 2022, he was nevertheless crowned after a furious race to catch up champion both Australian Open and to the sole Grand Slam-Record winner with 21 titles – in a match over five sets against Daniil Medvedev, who is almost ten years younger.
Djokovic on Nadal: “Not the first time he’s done this”
It was similar before the French Open: Before the tournament, he confessed that he had suffered a lot, but that he was doing better. “I don’t see myself as a favorite here though.” Then Nadal defeated Felix Auger Alliassime, who was almost 15 years his junior, in five sets in the round of 16 and just two days later showed no physical weaknesses against the number one in the world, Novak Djokovic.
After their 59th duel, Djokovic was not surprised that Nadal presented himself without pain: “I didn’t see any problems with him”, says the Serb in an interview with Sportschau. He interrupted an inquiry and explained: “I’m not at all surprised. It’s not the first time he’s been 100 per cent fit just days after an injury that left him barely able to walk. He’s done that many times in his career.”
Nadal about private doctor: “doing things that help”
Nadal stated in his press round after the match: “I said in Rome that I will have my doctor with me again here in Paris. That you can do things that will help if he is there. But it’s not the moment to talk about it.”said Nadal.
the “marca” reports, Nadal’s doctor Angel Ruiz Cotorro, who has worked for the Spanish Tennis Federation since the 1992 Olympic Games and before that also worked in Catalan cycling, gave Nadal guarantees that he would be able to last the two weeks in Paris. One solution is said to be anti-inflammatory agents; another: simple anesthesia. Cotorro accompanies Nadal in Paris every day. It is likely that Nadal will skip the entire grass season; a longer break is also up for debate.
Despite everything, Zverev faces a fully operational Nadal on Friday, the best player to ever play on clay. 27 players have recorded 110 wins or more in the four major tournaments in history. Nadal alone has that in Paris. In addition to Zverev’s good previous performances, the German can be encouraged by a look at the coaching bench. Sergi Bruguerain Zverev’s team since February, is currently more Spanish Davis Cup-Captain and coached Nadal against Germany in Valencia in 2018. Nadal’s opponent at the time: Alexander Zverev, who had no chance. In a direct comparison, Nadal leads 6: 3.