Ivan Ljubicic, Roger Federer's former coach, doesn't think that Rafael Nadal is going to the Roland Garros to just play; he expects great things from him.
Great things already came from Nadal at the Madrid Open with some notable wins like the one over Alex de Minaur. He won a few matches at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Madrid, showing some decent tennis.
The end came against Jiri Lehecka, who was able to outlast a tired Nadal. The Spaniard hasn't played much tennis lately and needs to build up his body to be competitive, but former player Ljubicic doesn't think he's going to Paris to simply 'play.'
He expects Nadal to arrive in good shape and possibly challenge for the trophy, which would be very impressive.
"We have seen what Rafa is like for 20 years. We know his champion mentality. As with Federer with Wimbledon, Rafa is only going to play in Paris if he believes he can go all the way; he is not going to go there to make an appearance."
"If he said he was going to do that, it would mean that he is not in good physical condition. Rafa knows very well what he needs, we will see if he can find the right sensations in the coming weeks."
Nadal has dodged questions about whether he would certainly play in Paris. The plan is obviously to play, but he said that he'll make a decision after he sees how the Italian Open campaign goes.
That's an interesting way of phrasing things, but very few people actually expect him to skip over Roland Garros. The only way he'd do that is if he felt that his body couldn't keep up, and it seems like it will be able to, at least judging by how the Madrid Open went.
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