Rafael Nadal has established himself as the most dominant clay-court player of all time. The Mallorcan Bulls holds the title as tennis' King of Clay for multiple record-breaking reasons: 9 French Open titles, 8 Monte Carlo Masters, 8 Barcelona Open and 7 Rome Masters.
If there's a period in a tennis calendar year where Nadal is virtually invincible, that would be April through early June where the action hits the red dirt and the Spaniard becomes bigger than the game itself. Year in and year out, Nadal proved that he is on a level of his own, breaking the hearts of his rivals and setting the bar higher as far as clay-court standard is concerned.
Then suddenly, a huge temblor is ripping through the tennis world. Nadal, who has endured all kinds of punishment with his sheer determination and guts, is suddenly struggling to tame his rebelling weapon. For the first time in his career, he faced an enemy believed to be an offspring of his own competitiveness For the first time ever, his hungry rivals, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, are smelling blood in the water.
From the moment, Nadal revealed his ongoing struggle with his mental game after back-to-back early round exits in tournaments he usually flourished. There's a feeling in the air that there could be a huge tectonic shift happening soon.
Nine times Nadal fended off a spirited effort from his challenger at Rolland Garros with a combination of top-level skills and incredible composure under pressure. He was indeed God-liked in all nine tournaments, but without that killer instinct, he has become a vulnerable mortal - a reality his coach is wary of.
"Before he won or lost, he felt the rhythm of the match. Now he feels that the game does not depend on him and therefore does not take the lead. The rivals think they can win, and he thinks that he can lose. He is worried because his confidence is minimal," Francisco Roig, Nadal's second coach, said of his ward's current upheaval via Tennis World USA.
Indeed, Federer, Djokovic, Murray and the rest of the field are now beginning to sense that Nadal isn't the indomitable warrior he used to be. They are starting to believe Nadal doesn't have anymore that solid rock composure that put him over the top everytime the going got tougher, and he will easily succumb to pressure when applied.
Discounting Nadal's fortitude would be a folly because he has a lot of time to recapture his old mojo between now and May 24, the start of the French Open. Then again, time is ticking away fast for him to snap it off. If there's a moment that could further enhance Nadal's place in the Mt. Rushmore of tennis, then this could be it. With his shoulders back against the wall, Rafa is out to exorcise his own demon as he continues his journey towards greatness.