1. 58 TELESCOPE MAY 2013
Lucky No.
58 TELESCOPE MAY 2013
The King of Clay

2. MAY 2013 TELESCOPE 59
Sports Feature
As he collapsed to the
floor and roared like
a lion, Rafael Nadal
was rewarded with a
standing ovation from
a crowd that was more
than appreciative of his
superiority on the tennis
court. The message that
rang loud and clear after
this dramatic scene,
which followed Nadal’s
comprehensive 4-6, 6-3,
6-4 victory against Juan
Martin Del Potro in the
final of the BNP Paribas
title at Indian Wells
in March, was that the
Spanish matador is back.
Return to Form
The seven-time French Open
winner had actually been back
since February following a
seven-month lay-off due to knee
problems, and Indian Wells was
his third consecutive title since
returning to the game. The fact
that Nadal chalked up wins over
players such as Roger Federer,
Tomas Berdych and an in-form
Del Potro en route to capturing
this title surely proves that he has
exorcised the demons haunting his
traumatised knees.
However, immediately after
his triumph, Nadal signalled that
he would skip the Miami Masters
the following week. “Doctors
recommend that I be back home
for a few weeks, rest a little bit,
and keep practising the
right way,” Nadal told BBC
correspondent Jonathan Overend.
“I need more power in the left leg
quadriceps, so I need to keep working
hard. The competition is hard for the
body, so after four fantastic weeks
I can’t go to Miami. I need to rest
for the next one.” The next one that
Nadal is referring to is, of course, his
pet event, the French Open.
Tricky Knees
Nadal quietly withdrew from the
scene after his shock second-round
loss to Lukas Rosol at Wimbledon
in June 2012; he had been visibly
struggling for two years prior.
After he was diagnosed with
a partial tear of the patella tendon
and inflammation in his left knee,
Nadal finally acknowledged that
his persistent knee troubles were
hampering his movement on court,
and was forced to sit out showpiece
tournaments last year such as the
London Olympics and the US Open,
and this year’s Australian Open.
In the middle of January this
year, fears that one of tennis’ most
tenacious warriors would once
again sit on the sidelines for another
extended spell were abated when
the Spanish tennis federation
(RFET) announced that Nadal was
making significant progress. “The
tests confirm that Rafa’s recovery is
proceeding favourably,” RFET doctor
Angel Ruiz-Cotorro was quoted by
Reuters. “Medically speaking, we are
in the final stages, and the results
were very satisfactory; the return to
the circuit is expected to proceed
according to plan.”
Nadal dismissed suggestions
After a long lay-off, Rafael Nadal is back in action. Are
his tricky knees ready to claim an eighth French Open
singles title? Sham Majid examines the evidence and
weighs in.
that he was afraid of returning to
the tennis courts in light of his
ongoing knee ailments. “Fear?
No. Stress? Yes. That’s normal. In
fact, the theme of the moment is
‘patience,’” he was quoted in French
publication, L’Equipe. “I need to
take it step by step and accept that
I’m not going to be at my maximum
level right away. If I’m not humble,
it’s not going to work. I’m not afraid
because I know in what state my
knee is in. For three weeks, all the
tests I have undergone have shown
perfect results. The truth is that
my left knee is in fantastic shape
compared with the other one. The
pain should be gone by the end of
February. I will regain my normal
mobility on court. I just need to give
my patellar tendon time to get used
to intense efforts.”
“IneedtotakeitstepbystepandacceptthatI’m
notgoingtobeatmymaximum
levelrightaway.IfI’mnothumble,
it’snotgoingtowork.”

3. 60 TELESCOPE MAY 2013
The Other Contenders
WHEN?
French Open
Premieres 26 May–9 Jun
Racquet Channel
(CH 211)
Roger Federer
The Swiss great has won the
French Open just once, in 2009.
He tripped at the final hurdle
four times (2006, 2007, 2008,
2011) facing Nadal across the net.
Following a slight back problem
acquired during his quarter-final
defeat to Nadal at Indian Wells,
Federer took a leaf from the Nadal
playbook and went on an eight-
week hiatus to get into prime
condition for Roland Garros.
Novak Djokovic
Djokovic reached the French
final last year but couldn’t get
the better of Nadal. With the
other three Grand Slams already
in his pocket, the Serb will be
hell-bent on claiming glory at
Roland Garros this year. There
have been suggestions that he is
more of a hard court player, but
Back in the Game
As he made his long-awaited
comeback at the Chile Open
in February after being out for
222 days, the man with 11 Grand
Slam singles titles under his belt
admitted that he’s still in pain. “It’s
a settled pain. I could feel it in the
morning while getting up and in the
afternoon while I’m eating or while
hitting a backhand,” Nadal told
L’Equipe. However, Toni Nadal, the
champ’s uncle and coach, waded
into the debate to play down
concerns. “The knee is much better,
but they’ve told us he will feel some
discomfort and lack of mobility
until the end of the month,” the
coach told The Huffington Post.
“But it’s definitely getting better.”
Indeed, it has.
Roland Garros 2013
During his match against Del Potro at
Indian Wells, the Spaniard displayed
traits so typical of the Nadal of old:
free movement and explosive power.
He showed no signs of distress or
discomfort over his knee.
Still, he has decided to take
a break, giving himself plenty of
time to rest and recuperate as he
attempts to claim an eighth singles
crown at Roland Garros. It’s no
crime, of course, and few would bet
against the raging Spanish bull from
achieving that unbelievable feat:
the stats don’t lie.
According to the Bleacher
Report, Nadal has 31 consecutive
match wins at the French Open, and
boasts of an unparalleled record of
52 wins and a solitary defeat—that’s
a 98.11% win rate. In fact, the King of
Clay has earned two French Opens
without dropping a single set, and
is the only person to win the Clay
Slam—winning on the clay courts of
Monte Carlo, Rome, Madrid as well
as the French Open in calendar year.
Anyone betting against Nadal
taking a record eighth crown must
be either brave or foolish.
Djokovic is determined put
them to rest. “I’m not hiding
that priority No.1 is probably
Roland Garros because it’s
the only Grand Slam I haven’t
won,” Djokovic was quoted in
The Independent.
Andy Murray
“Clay’s been a surface I’ve
struggled on; my results on
clay haven’t been as good as
on the other surfaces, so to be
able to do that would be one
of my best achievements,”
Murray told ESPN UK. It’s not
that bad, really: his best result
was a semi-final
berth in 2011.
Can the Scot
go one step
further this
year?