Rafael Nadal might or might not play at the upcoming Australian Open, but fellow former world no. 1 Andy Roddick thinks that his recent comments show a lot of promise.
The whole saga about Nadal playing at the Australian Open or not started when Craig Tiley said that the Spaniard would make an appearance, supposedly trying to drive the sales of tickets.
The Spaniard then came out and corrected Tiley, admitting that he doesn't know whether he will play. Then another comment by the Spaniard made it seem like he would, though he didn't confirm it would be in Melbourne.
Let's also not forget that his uncle, Toni Nadal, said that he expects Rafa to be ready for the Australian Open. Now, it's a situation where different sides claim different things, but according to Roddick, the outcome is most likely positive.
He spoke about Nadal in his latest column for Betway, explaining why he thinks that Nadal will be in Melbourne.
Rafael Nadal saying that he genuinely believes he will play again was a big thing to hear. What Rafa says, and the way he says it, is important. He’s usually pretty cautious with his statements, but he was clear with his intent.
That tells me he’s in a good mind frame which means his health is good. If he is going to play the Australian Open, then I would imagine he’d need to play a lower-level event before to get some matches in.
No news has really come out about Nadal playing anywhere, so we'll see whether he returns earlier or whether he returns at the Australian Open. According to Roddick, Roland Garros will be his main target, which makes sense.
I think we’re going to work backwards from early May. He’s going to have Roland Garros circled on his calendar to try to attack that event one last time, and every decision that he makes for the next couple of months will have to be in lockstep with the strategy for that tournament.
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