World No. 1 Rafael Nadal has revealed the biggest improvement he has made in his game in recent times.
Nadal, who struggled with a string of injuries in 2016, most notably a wrist injury, which forced him to end his season prematurely, made a stunning return to action in 2017. The Spaniard went on to claim his 10th French Open title in Paris, becoming the first man to win a single Grand Slam crown on 10 different occasions.
A few months later he added a third US Open trophy to his already burgeoning collection of silverware, taking his Major count to 16, just three behind his great rival Roger Federer.
The southpaw from Majorca has now made a disclosure about what really worked for him in the 2017 season. Emphasizing on the fact that at one point of time in his career, his second serve was considered the biggest weakness in his game and he willfully worked on that weakness during the 2016 off-season. And the results were for all to see as Rafa led the pack on the ATP tour as far points won behind the second serve are concerned.
Nadal said: “I’ve been hitting second serves better than any time in my career. I managed to add a few kilometers an hour to my serve in general and I think that maybe even my second serve was better than my first. I could say that I won a lot of almost free points. I have to keep working on that because there have been two key things in my career, serving and returning; where points start and where I have to attack to not run more than I have to. My return this year has been very positive.”
“Before I had even more… After games I would remember everything. What you’ve done on court stays with you because it’s important to you.”
