Almost a month after breaking the all-time record for most major titles won by a male tennis player, Rafael Nadal is set to return to action this week at the Mexican Open in Acapulco.
The former world No.1 came back from two sets down to defeat Daniil Medvedev in the final of the Australian Open to claim his 21st Grand Slam title. Moving him ahead of rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic who are both on 20. Nadal’s win occurred in what was only his second tournament since returning to the Tour following a foot injury which had sidelined him for four months.
After his Melbourne triumph, the 35-year-old returned to his native Spain to prepare for the season ahead. Now he has had time to reflect on the latest achievement of his career, he admits it has had little impact on his life.
“Absolutely nothing with 21, I’m not going to lie to you. From 20 to 21 there is not a very large percentage (of change). Life goes on exactly the same,” Nadal told reporters on Sunday.
“The only thing that has changed is that now I play tennis, which a few months ago I couldn’t. I am very happy about everything that happened in Australia, it was very unexpected, especially before the tournament started.’
“In my life, nothing has changed. No title is going to change what is important in my life, which are other things.”
Whilst nothing may have changed for Nadal, he describes the past few weeks as some of the ‘most exciting’ of his entire career. He is yet to lose a match on the Tour this season after also winning the Melbourne Summer Set at the start of the year.
The next challenge for the Spaniard will be Acapulco this week, which will feature a total of five top 10 players in the draw. Nadal is a three-time champion of the tournament but two of those titles were won when the event was held on the clay. He says there are two principal reasons as to why he wants to play this week.
“I have played very little in the last two years and because I feel like playing tennis,” he explained.
“After Australia, I had to analyze how my body would respond because historically after Australia I notice a physical downturn. This year was similar.’
“I did not notice the downturn right away, but it came a little later. At the pain level, my body was responding relatively well, after what happened and that led me to make the decision to come. My start to the year has been infinitely better than I could imagine.”
Nadal faces a tough task ahead of him if he wishes to add to his trophy collection in Mexico. He will begin his campaign against Reilly Opelka who is known for his blistering serve and has won seven out of his past eight matches played since the Australian Open. Opelka lost in the final of the Delray Beach Open on Sunday to top seed Cameron Norrie.
“It is a very difficult first round against a rival who has just won a tournament and made the final in another. He is one of the most difficult players to play on this type of court because of the type of game he has,” Nadal analyzed.
“I will take everything game by game and from there, if I advance, we will see how everything progresses. I know it’s a very difficult premiere.”
Later on in the draw he could face either Grigor Dimitrov or Maxime Cressy in the second round. Then he could have to take on Matteo Berrettini followed by Medvedev if he wishes to make it to the final.
One notable absence from Mexico is world No.1 Novak Djokovic who is competing at the Dubai Tennis Championships. The event will be the first Djokovic has played this season after he was deported from Australia following a legal battle with officials over the validity of his visa. The Serbian star is the only player in the top 100 on the men’s Tour not to be vaccinated and currently has no plan to do so. The stance risks the prospect of him not being allowed to play some tournaments in the future.
“It will affect his legacy if he can play or not,” Nadal said of his rival. “I don’t know if it will affect the Grand Slam.
“Everyone makes their own decisions and must live with them. In this sense, hopefully the pandemic improves in every way and there are no more deaths.
“Whether he is vaccinated or not, the good thing would be for Novak to play again. If Djokovic can play the Grand Slams without being vaccinated, he is welcome.”
Nadal is due to play his first round match on Tuesday.
