Nadal Backed To Win Roland Garros Despite Recent Injury Problems

Friday, 07 April 2023 at 06:50

Updated at Friday, 07 April 2023 at 00:42

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byBalasz Virag

Laura Robson considers Rafael Nadal to be the Roland Garros favourite despite not playing since the Australian Open.

No player in history has ever been as dominant as Nadal at Roland Garros so this opinion doesn't surprise anybody. No other player has dominated any event in history as much as Nadal dominated the French Open and for many people, it's simply impossible to bet against him on Philippe Chatrier.

Robson is certainly not willing to do that as she watched him win the event last year without problems despite playing on a numb foot. He's not that much in better health this year but despite the problems, for her, he's still the man to beat there as she revealed to Eurosport.

The numbers that he's had at Paris, it's like hard to wrap your head around, but I just think he needs matches. The draw is wide open, but for me, it's hard to root against Rafa on clay.

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The draw is indeed very open as we'll have Djokovic there along with many other contenders like Alcaraz, Tsitsipas, Zverev and others. All of that have shined at the event in the past and all could technically win it. None of them is as good as Nadal on clay and Robson noted the magical nature of his red dirt prowess.

It's like a magical thing to watch him on clay when he's 100% fit and just able to come up with something special. If his forehand game is strong from the start in Barcelona, then maybe a 15th title is on the way.

Winning a 15th title at the event would truly be magical because the number has a bit of a better ring than 14. It certainly looks better on paper as well and will likely never be broken. Don't be fooled by the Spaniard and his humble talk because he cares quite a lot about records.