Having secured a remarkable 14th French Open title, Rafael Nadal has already switched his focus to Wimbledon.
Nadal is on course for a clean sweep of the Grand Slam titles in 2022 and, judging by his efforts at the Australian Open and French Open, he looks set to be a serious contender at the All-England Club this summer.
Resilient Nadal Impresses In Paris
Justifying his title as the ‘King of Clay’, Nadal swept away all before him to win the crown at Roland Garros and, in the process, land the 22nd Grand Slam title of his illustrious career. Nadal, who is 6/1 in the Wimbledon 2022 odds to win the tournament at SW19, had to beat world number one Novak Djokovic on his way to the title in Paris. Nadal and Djokovic remain the two biggest names in men’s tennis and for the Spaniard to pull off another big victory against the Serbian star will have done his confidence no harm at all going forward.
Nadal can now look ahead to the two remaining Grand Slam events of the year at Wimbledon and the US Open with the knowledge he is still a real force at the top of the game. Just turning 36, Nadal will be fully aware he does not have too many more major tournaments ahead of him and he’ll be eager to pull even further away from Djokovic in the slam standings. That win at Roland Garros means Nadal has won two more Grand Slam titles than Djokovic’s 20 and now the world number one has his work cut out to try and surpass the man from Mallorca.
Hopes Rest On Injury Solution
Amid the celebrations of yet another title at Roland Garros, there were concerns about Nadal’s ongoing foot problem. The experienced player suffers from Mueller-Weiss syndrome, which affects the bones in his feet. Specifically, it was his left foot that was the issue in Paris and it required anaesthetic injections to get Nadal through his run to the French Open title.
Nadal has admitted his management of the injury is not sustainable and is hoping he can find an alternative solution ahead of his attempt to win the 2022 Wimbledon title. The two-time Wimbledon winner, whose last title at the All-England Club came back in 2010, will look to manage his time on the court in the build-up to his trip to London. Nadal has revealed his determination to make sure he is in the best shape possible to not only play at Wimbledon but try to end that long wait to claim the title at SW19. Having played his way through the pain barrier to win down in Melbourne and Paris, there is hope Nadal can mount a serious title challenge at Wimbledon.
Nadal has never reached the All-England Club, having won the first two Grand Slams of the year and the excitement is growing about what this iconic player will do next.
