Rafael Nadal, Chasing Grand Slam, Will Head to Wimbledon

Nadal, who won Wimbledon in 2008 and 2010, has not played in any grass-court tournament since 2019, when he lost in the semifinals of Wimbledon to his longtime rival Federer.

“I’ve still got a week of training in London, and if everything goes well I will start the tournament,” said Nadal, who is scheduled to play in an exhibition in London before Wimbledon. “Playing well at the French Open helps in terms of confidence and gives you a bit more peace of mind. But grass is a very difficult surface in the sense that there is little logic. Obviously when you have gone the years that I’ve gone without playing on grass and with the fact I am not going to play official matches beforehand, any round could be complicated.”

Nadal has made a habit of talking down his chances, but the men’s field at Wimbledon will be understrength this year. Wimbledon has barred Russian and Belarusian players because of the war in Ukraine, which means that No. 1 ranked Daniil Medvedev and No. 8 Andrey Rublev, both Russians, will not take part. No. 2 Alexander Zverev of Germany tore ligaments in his right ankle in his French Open semifinal against Nadal and underwent surgery. Zverev could be out of action for several months.

But Novak Djokovic, the world’s best grass-court player in recent years, will play Wimbledon, where he has won the last three men’s singles titles. He will be seeded No. 1 and start as a strong favorite. Nadal will be seeded No. 2, and like Djokovic a year ago, is chasing a Grand Slam, which requires a player to win all four majors in the same calendar year.

The last man to do it was Rod Laver in 1969. Djokovic came up one match short, losing the 2021 U.S. Open final to Medvedev. Nadal, for the first time in his long career, has won the first two legs of the Grand Slam after winning the Australian Open and French Open.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/17/sports/tennis/nadal-wimbledon-grand-slam.html