Rafael Nadal will play his 14th Roland Garros final on Sunday as he can win his 22nd Grand Slam title and his coach, Carlos Moya gave his insight prior to the final match.
In the final, the experienced Spaniard will take on Casper Ruud who trained in his academy and admitted that Rafael Nadal is his idol. The young Norwegian is playing a great tournament, and so it won't be easy for the Spaniard, but his coach warns about Nadal's experience.
“There’s still work to be done and it’s the most important work, closing out the tournament,” warned coach Carlos Moya in conversation with ATPTour.com. “We’ll see how it goes Sunday, there is a lot of wear and tear but it’s the final push.
“It’s not the way you want to reach a final. We’re very sorry for [Alexander] Zverev and we wish him a speedy recovery. So far, Rafa has done an astonishing job of surviving without playing his best tennis. It was an epic effort up to the moment when Zverev was injured.”
“Those of us that are close to Rafa knows how good Casper is. We have a lot of respect for him and are anticipating a long and hard battle. He’s a player who knows the intricacies of this surface very well and it’s going to be a tough match. He’s very confident. He’s one of the best clay players on Tour. We expect a battle from the baseline, with long rallies.”
“It’s not the easiest place to play your first Grand Slam final. And anything can happen. I won’t get tired of saying it; we’re talking about Roland Garros and Rafa Nadal. We haven’t spoken about number 22. Obviously, it’s on the horizon, but that would add pressure to Rafa. It’s not necessary."
"The fact that he has won 13 Roland Garros[titles], maybe 14 tomorrow, ... is practically impossible to beat. In 17 years, with all the injuries he’s had, he hasn’t spent a single week outside the Top 10 and has achieved all of that. It is incredible.”
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