Rafael Nadal (Photo : Twitter)
Rafael Nadal is ranked no.7 in the world, and not, as he says 200th. Yet critics are dismissing him quite easily.
An upset in the US Open has pundits severely questioning his ability to bounce back. One of them is former World no.1 from Brazil, Gustavo Kuerten as he spoked to Tenis News (translated by IB Times).
"It is very unlikely that he (Nadal) can be number one in the world or even win a grand slam, especially with the performances of other guys," Guga said. "When his performance is committed even if he is nervous, he will find a way, but if his performance is not 100 percent, there is nothing that he can do."
That may sound harsh, but the rest of the article from Tenis News (translated) elaborated that if Nadal is not 100% (due to injury) he would not stand a chance to win against a player like Novak Djokovic. It wasn't so much a knock on Nadal as it is praise for the Djoker.
Still, it was alluded that the best years of the Spaniard are gone, which Wall Street Journal contends. They point out that the upset at the US Open was disappointing, but Nadal was actually improving from his past performances in the year. Analyzing further, he says it's not about him deteriorating but simply being outclassed by the opponent.
"Look back on his matches of old and you'll see all the times he was close to defeat before turning a match in his favor with a few shots," WSJ argues. "This is not easy to do, and Nadal may never do it as well as he used to do it. But he's still not too old or broken down to do it for a while longer. He says he's getting closer, and he sounds like he knows what he's talking about."
Nadal himself admits: "When I am losing, I am losing because the opponents beat me, not because I lose the match, as I did a lot of times at the beginning of the season," Nadal said. "That's an improvement for me, so I have a base now. That is a start. I know what I have to do and I going to work on it."
Not all hope is lost for Rafa..for now.
