A 21-time Major winner Rafael Nadal will give his everything to defend the Australian Open title in January and add another Major crown to his tally. Nadal claimed two Major trophies in 2022 and stood as a player to beat in the year’s first half.
However, he injured his abdominal muscle at Wimbledon and played only nine matches since August, losing five and finishing as world no. 2. Rafa withdrew from the All England Club ahead of the semi-final and never found his A-game again.
He experienced the fourth-round US Open loss and missed a chance to become world no. 1 at 36. Still feeling the pain, Nadal skipped the next two months and returned to action at the Paris Masters and the ATP Finals. Never fancying indoor conditions, Rafa struggled to perform at his best and chase titles, losing four consecutive matches for the first time since the end of 2009!
The Spaniard wrapped up the official season with a tight victory over Casper Ruud before heading to South America with the Norwegian. Nadal played six matches in six countries, winning five and recharging batteries ahead of the Australia trip.
The Spaniard will go Down under in a couple of weeks, leading Spain at the inaugural United Cup and hoping for good preparation ahead of the Australian Open. Rafa claimed his second Australian Open crown this January, the first in 13 years!
The veteran missed the second part of 2021 due to a foot injury and did not know what to expect in Melbourne.
Rafael Nadal wants to defend his Australian Open title.
As many times before, Rafa rose over the issues and scored ten consecutive victories in Melbourne to walk away with two trophies.
Nadal had to dig deep at the Australian Open, losing four kilograms against Denis Shapovalov and still reaching the title clash. Daniil Medvedev was eager to claim the second consecutive Major title against a great rival, playing well and opening a 6-2, 7-6, 3-2, 40-0 advantage.
Nadal found strength and performed one of his brightest comebacks in a career, prevailing 2-6, 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 7-5 in five hours and 24 minutes. Thus, he became the first player with 21 Major titles and the second after Novak Djokovic with two crowns at all four Majors.
“I will travel to Australia in a couple of weeks with a desire to work hard, give my best and feel competitive,” Rafael Nadal said.
